The Forgotten Series Book 1: Covert Tactics
by CanadianRose
Summary: The Doctor is captured by strange humans in Houston, Texas.  They've taken his TARDIS and have left him helpless at a small hospital.  A young nursing student, Melissa Brogan, is his only hope at escaping, but Melissa has problems of her own.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue:

As the club connected with his head, the Doctor again winced and berated himself for falling for that trap. It was such a simple trap, yet he fell for it. He never suspected the danger. What had happened? Was this regeneration gullible?

Truth be told, the Doctor was almost certain that he would have fallen for it at any point in his lifespan. He was the Doctor; he made people better. Usually, the people who came running up to him where the ones who needed help. These people seemed desperate, and they didn't know who he was. They didn't know he was the Doctor. Of course, if he had run into a bunch of people on earth in 2010 in Texas, of all places, who knew him, he would have been more than a little suspicious. But they didn't know him. They came to him like people who were at the end of their rope, who thought that anyone, no matter how qualified, could make things better.

So, he fell for it, and now he was their prisoner. He looked up at the man with the club, putting as much fire in his gaze as he could in his wounded state. This was the gaze he gave those who were up to no good, whom he was going to stop. This was the gaze of a Time Lord infuriated by the injustice he was seeing. Normally, people trembled in his gaze. Well, some laughed, and some merely ignored him; those were the real baddies, the ones who knew no fear. Well, at least until he ruined their plans yet again. But these people, ordinary humans from the looks of them, didn't even notice that look. Perhaps his bruised and bloodied face could not express that gaze as well as it could normally.

His vision was starting to fade. He knew that, with the next blow, he'd probably be unconscious. Then he'd be completely at their mercy. Like he wasn't now. That had never stopped him before. Once he recovered, he would escape. And then find his TARDIS. And find out why those humans were acting so strange. And put a stop to their plans, whatever they were. Yep, he would get out of this. He always did.

The man in front of him let the club fall again. The Doctor grunted only slightly at the impact. He collapsed on the ground, out cold. The man looked at him through his dark sunglasses. "The Doctor has been neutralized," he said in a calm voice. "Proceed with containment plan."

Chapter 1:

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

There were no words to describe the utter cruelty of that sound. Melissa groaned. An arm snaked out from beneath the covers to punch the offending alarm clock into silence. She squinted, bringing the bleary red numbers into focus. 4:30. Oh yes, clinical day. Melissa groaned again.

It was great being in the nursing program. Oh yes, she loved all the stuff she was learning, but... things weren't going as planned. Oh, they most certainly weren't. She had gone from being a bright student with a 4.0 GPA, one of only 70 who were accepted into the program, to being a student struggling with the simplest physical skills, on the verge of failure. Her family had known that she would have problems. She usually did with physical skills. But now... seeing that evaluation, hearing her instructor's worrying comments... those problems were getting pretty big.

She got out of her warm bed and tried to ignore the quivering feeling in her gut. She dressed her short, insignificant figure in her freshly ironed uniform. She looked in the mirror as she brushed her hair back. A small, frightened girl stared back at her with wide, chocolate-brown eyes in a pale face. She brushed her thick, dark brown hair into a ponytail. This always made her arms ache afterwards, but it was necessary for clinical. Her face was almost a perfect oval, and nothing struck her as very attractive. She had a small, freckled nose and quiet lips. Her eyes, under their dark eyebrows, were the only things that stood out, and they weren't that pretty. Well, they weren't ugly, either, just okay.

She clipped her ID badge onto the short white jacket that was part of her uniform. She grabbed her bag and stethoscope and rushed down the stairs. A lump was on the couch. It moved, rolling over as she turned on the kitchen lights. Heavy snoring echoed in the room. "Sorry, Dad," she whispered. Well, it didn't look like he minded.

After eating a bowl of cereal, she hopped into the car and began to drive to the hospital. The nurses there called it an LTAC facility, for Long-Term Acute Care, something between a hospital and a nursing home. The one she went to was a small, two-storey building. It was a long journey, 45 minutes. The air-conditioning in her car seemed to be dying, which was quite an issue in Houston. However, it was pretty cool in the mornings. Going home she could sweat buckets without having to worry about her uniform.

She arrived when it was still dark. As usual, she was quite early, half an hour early. It was only 6:00. She went to the cafeteria where the students met before and after clinical and waited. She took a notebook out of her bag, ready to doodle, but she was too nervous. All she could think about was her instructor's face and her words the previous week.

Soon the other students arrived, chatting. None of them seemed to have her problems. She was too shy. She lacked confidence. She couldn't do an assessment correctly. Those were the reasons why she was failing. She shrank into her chair, feeling intimidated by their cheeriness and chattiness.

"Okay, what do we have to do today?" the instructor said as soon as she walked in. "Chloe needs to work on her bedbath. Janice still hasn't used a bedpan yet." Her eyes fell on Melissa. "And I'll need to see you do an assessment. I need to see an improvement very soon, Melissa. Have you spoken to Mrs. O'Connor yet?"

Melissa swallowed to moisten her throat. "Yes, Miss Gabriella. I went there like you said. And I went to the open lab, too. Miss Sheryl and Miss Claire said I did pretty well."

"Okay. I'll see if you do any better today." She flipped through her papers, muttering about which students to go with which nurses.

Soon, they were marching through the hallway, ready to hear their nurses give report. "Okay, Melissa and Robert, you're with Nurse Lisa today," Miss Gabriella said.

Nurse Lisa turned and smiled. She was an older lady with red hair in a perm. She was shorter than Melissa and wore glasses. Melissa felt comfortable around her already, like she was with her grandmother. "Ah, students! I always love students. I still remember when I was in school. Some of the nurses I was with were real monsters! I hope I give you a good learning experience."

"I'm sure you'll be great," Robert said. He was a tall black man who looked like he was more suited to play basketball than be a nurse. However, he was one of the best students in clinical. "What sort of patients do you have today?"

"Hmmm, it depends on what specialty you're interested in," Miss Lisa said, looking at her papers.

"I really like neurology," Robert said.

"Then the one in 104 will be best for you. He's in here for a stroke. And what about you?"

"I kind of like psychiatry," Melissa said.

"Oh, then you'd do great with 102. He's a very... interesting patient. Now, when I get report on your patient, be sure to fill out this sheet."

Melissa took the sheet. She marveled about how her mind was beginning to morph into a nurse's mind. At first, the night nurse's report was just a jumble of abbreviations and acronyms that went by at the speed of lightening. Now she could keep up to them, and she knew more than half the stuff that they spoke about.

"... and Dr. Wilson put an order in for a BMP this morning," the young blonde night nurse said. "You'll want to get it done pretty soon, you know how he is with lab tests."

"Oh, I sure do," Nurse Lisa said, scribbling on her papers.

"Now, 102. He's a young male of an unknown age. He came in just last night. He had no identification, so we really don't know who he is. His doctor is Leroy Smith. He is allergic to aspirin. He came in to St. Mark's ER early Friday morning after an alleged assault. He was unconscious and had an ET tube put in en route. He had facial trauma and multiple scalp lacerations. Those have been stitched up and are healing well. He was also diagnosed with respiratory failure so he's currently on a ventilator. He also has a large-bore NG tube in place. All extremities are restrained. I've already got a restraint order from Dr. Smith for today, so you're okay for that. Apparently he can be quite violent. History is insignificant except for paranoid schizophrenia currently being treated by Haldol. He has no family or friends that we know of. Assessment findings were pretty much normal, except his vital signs are completely wacky. His temperature is extremely low, no matter what we do to increase it. We've tried blankets, heating the room, but it's still the same. His blood pressure is pretty high, too. He doesn't have any history of hypertension, but he is on Haldol, so it could be NMS. I'd suggest you hold his next dose and monitor him carefully. And his pulse is the weirdest rhythm I've ever felt, but his apical pulse sounds normal. I'm sure it's some kind of arrhythmia. I've called Dr. Smith to get an EKG, but he says it's unnecessary. Dr. Smith hasn't put any orders in except for Haldol, Ativan, and the usual prn orders. No labs ordered. He has a saline lock in his left arm and it is currently intact. He's been pretty much quiet the whole night. The Haldol and Ativan have pretty much knocked him out, but he never really slept. He just watched everyone go by with those sad brown eyes of his. He may start to wake up soon because I didn't give him the last dose of Haldol because of his blood pressure. Okay, that's about it. Any questions?"

Nurse Lisa looked over her shoulder at Melissa. "How's that? Does he sound interesting?"

Melissa nodded. "Oh yes."

"Why don't you go in there right now? Take his vitals, say good morning."

Melissa nodded again and walked to the room, taking the nearest vital signs machine with her. She knocked on the door, just like she'd been taught. Because her patient had an endotracheal tube, she knew that he wouldn't be able to speak. After a moment, she opened the door and walked in with a cheery smile. "Hello, I'm Melissa. I'm a student nurse and I'm going to be taking care of you today."

The man on the bed watched her every move. His head only moved slightly, but his brown eyes tracked her. She could hear the sigh of the machine that breathed for him. He was tall and thin, she could see. His arms, tied in cloth restraints, rested beside his slender figure. His hair was brown like hers, and just as messy. His eyes were the most striking aspect of his appearance. They were old, so old, and they contained such wisdom. She felt like she could drown in them. They also ached with sorrow, and a hint of anger burned deep inside of them. However, the only thing she saw in them for herself was a questioning curiosity.

"Wondering about the accent, are you? Well, I'm not from around here, so I don't talk like a Texan." She plugged the machine into the wall and waited for it to come to life. "Not like they talk like they do in the movies, but it is different. I'm from up north. Way north. Canada north. Yep, I'm a foreigner." She wrapped the blood pressure cuff around his arm gently. "This'll only squeeze a little." The machine took his heart rate the same time as it took his blood pressure, so she decided to look at his respirations instead. The ventilator had the number of breaths on it, so she used that. "Okay, now I need to take your temperature." She put the probe under his arm and read the findings from the blood pressure cuff. The reading was a little high, but the heart rate was inconclusive. She took his wrist, but she couldn't count the beats as they were so irregular. So, she took her stethoscope out and listened to the apical rate. Well, that sounded normal, a good steady rate, but why was his radial pulse so odd?

"Well, that's all I need for now," she said, taking the probe. "I'll be back soon to check you over with my instructor." She gasped when she saw the number. She didn't know a human temperature could go so low! He was as cold as a corpse! She decided to check it against his other vital signs and retake it if it wasn't in his baseline, but that was extremely strange.

She was looking through his chart when her instructor came a few minutes later. "Are you ready?" Miss Gabriella asked.

Melissa nodded as she wrote in the vitals she had just taken onto the graphics sheet. She closed the chart and slowly got off her chair. She did not meet her instructor's eyes. Her heart was going about as fast as the vital sign machine thought her patient's was.

"Relax. Part of the reason why you still have trouble is that you get so anxious."

"Or I'm just not good at it," Melissa mumbled under her breath.

Miss Gabriella did not hear this comment. Instead, she nodded towards the door. "Go on. We're going to be giving meds in twenty minutes."

As soon as she stepped into the room, she fell into her routine. She had practiced this at home and in the open labs. "I can't really assess his orientation because he's got an ET tube in."

"Does he have a communication board?"

Melissa looked around, feeling slightly flustered. "No, I can't see any."

Miss Gabriella let this pass. "I'll talk to one of the nurses and see if we can get one. Go on."

Melissa went through her assessment smoothly. She used her penlight to check his pupils and mucous membranes and felt his scalp through his hair. She also checked his wounds. They were healing nicely. Then she examined his arms. His capillary refill was excellent, his skin was elastic, his strength was good, but he still had that weird pulse. "I really don't know what to make of this," she said. "Feel his pulse."

Miss Gabriella felt it for half a minute, no expression on her face. "Probably has an arrhythmia. You'll find out more on the chest examination."

Melissa continued to his chest. That was where everything went wrong. She found his apical and counted for the full sixty seconds. Nothing strange there. Perhaps he had a bruit or some peripheral vascular disease? Then she went to breath sounds. As she continued down the chest, switching from side to side, she found something strange. She was hearing heart sounds on the right side of the chest! The strongest point was right where the apical would be if this man's heart was on the right. She listened to all the other landmarks, the ones over all four valves. It was a mirror image of what was on the left. She listened to the left side again. So that's why his pulse was so strange! She straightened up and stated her observation. "This man has two hearts."

"No person has two hearts. There's nothing documented on that. Perhaps it's possible with conjoined twins, but he doesn't look like one."

"Go on, you listen," Melissa said, confident that she was not mistaken.

Miss Gabriella used her own stethoscope to listen to this man's two hearts. She took a while, and Melissa began to think that she believed her, but then she turned to her and said: "It's not two hearts. He's got some arrhythmia or valvular problem. Perhaps we should get an ECG or an echo done."

Melissa sighed. So, she had failed again.

"Melissa, you've already had trouble with breath sounds and bowel sounds. I'm beginning to wonder if you can hear anything at all through your stethoscope. Or perhaps you have problems hearing yourself."

"No," Melissa said. "My hearing's just fine."

"Melissa, you still have three weeks until the semester's over. If you can do a whole assessment next week, you may still pass the course."

"I know," Melissa said. "I'll try really hard." She bit her lip.

"Melissa, I've heard from Mrs. O'Connor that you're an excellent student in class. It's the practical aspects of nursing that you have trouble with. With practice, you will be a wonderful nurse."

"If I pass the program," Melissa said. She felt tears building up. She couldn't cry now, not in front of Miss Gabriella, not in front of the patient. That would only make her more of a failure. She walked out the door, ignoring Miss Gabriella's words. They seemed more encouraging than reprimanding. Well, she didn't need encouraging. Someone telling her that she would definitely pass because she was such a bright student felt like a slap in the face.

She stayed at the nurse's station for the next while, shutting out all the noise around her. She heard Dr. Smith talk about transferring the strange patient that afternoon. She looked up once and stared for a while. Dr. Smith was wearing dark sunglasses indoors. That was strange. However, she went back to her drug book, scribbling down her patient's medications and all the information she needed about them to give them.

"He may not need more Ativan," Nurse Lisa said from the nurse's station. "I'm not sure. I don't like giving too much Ativan, it's like turning people into zombies. Why don't you go check?"

Melissa simply nodded. She turned and walked into her patient's room. She was only going to check on him for less than a minute. She was too wrapped up in her own problems to focus for long. However, her first look at him captivated her. He looked terrified! His fists were clenched and his eyes were wide and frightened. Oh dear, he definitely needed some Ativan. "Hey, Mr. Doe, you're going to be alright. We're going to give you some medicine to help you calm down."

His eyes locked onto hers and suddenly she was unable to move. They had such a desperate, pleading look in them that she was shocked into silence. It was as if she were his only hope to live. She felt that her heart wouldn't be able to make it whole if she didn't find out what was bothering him. She had to find out, but he was unable to communicate. She had an idea. "I'll be right back."

She walked out into the hallway. Nurse Lisa was nearby, holding a medicine cup with about five pills in it for another patient. She looked up from the orders she was checking. "Could I remove one of his restraints?" Melissa asked. "I know you're supposed to exercise them every hour or something like that. When I do that, can I give him a paper and pen and ask him what he wants? He really wants something. That should probably calm him down."

Nurse Lisa nodded. "Yes, go ahead. That cuts down on the work for me. Just be careful. Dr. Smith says he's dangerous and he attacked him in the ER."

Melissa went without paying much attention to this last statement. She was sure that patient wasn't going to strike her or anything. He recognized her as a friend. Once she gave him some freedom, he'd be grateful, not violent. She came into the room with a shred of paper, her clipboard, and a pen. "Okay, I'm going to exercise your arm a bit," she said, yanking on the slip knot. "You seem to want something. You can write it down here."

The patient almost immediately snatched her pen once his arm was free. She was startled at first, but she held out the clipboard. He began to write.

_ Coat_.

He wanted his coat. Well, that was easy to manage. "Where is it?" she asked.

_ Closet_.

"Don't worry, I'll get it," she said. She threw the doors open and found a long brown coat hanging up. She bounced back to the bed, happy to be helping him at last. She set it down on top of him and his eyes almost smiled at her. She smiled back, but it became a frown when she read his next message.

_ Don't panic_.

What? What did he mean? She opened her mouth to ask, but, before she could do anything, he yanked the tube out of his throat.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

"I said don't panic!" the man said. He flashed her a grin. "I didn't need that tube anyway."

Melissa gaped at him. She had her finger on the call light and was about to press it to get help, but she didn't. He was right. He was not in respiratory failure. No retractions, cyanosis, or nasal flaring. He was breathing quite normally. His voice sounded a little raspy, but she guessed that that was what happened after you took out a tube that was inserted between your vocal cords.

He was holding a slender pen-like thing in his hand. It glowed blue and made a whirring sound. The alarms on the ventilator soon ceased. "Good, now we can have a chat in private," he said, leaning over to release his other arm. "Don't you just hate interruptions when you're having a serious conversation? I'm the Doctor, and you're... Melissa R. Brogan. What's the R for?"

"That's none of your business," Melissa said. That was the only phrase that came to her stunned brain. This man, who was supposed to be violent, psychotic, and in respiratory failure was now chatting with her quite calmly and asking her what her middle name was. His eyes were alert and fixed on her. He was obviously in touch with reality. "Are you British or something? You have an accent."

"Or something," the Doctor said. He was grabbing his ankle restraints now. "I travel around, go places. If people get in trouble, I try to help them out. That seems to happen a lot, people getting into trouble. At least when I'm around. And right now I seem to have found some trouble. People with dark sunglasses, obviously up to no good."

"Dr. Smith wears sunglasses inside," Melissa said.

"I know. Whoever they are, he's one of them."

"How do you know they're up to no good?"

"People who mess with me usually aren't. And I'm one of the good guys. That should be quite obvious. I don't go around bashing people's heads in."

Melissa grinned. This all was quite surprising, really, but somehow he made it all seem so... normal. The way he talked made it apparent that he was used to this sort of thing. "So, what are you? Some sort of secret agent? MI5?"

"You could say that."

"Why did they want you here?"

"Because I'm important and they know that. They needed me out of the way. Now I need to find out what they're doing and somehow put a stop to it."

"Can I help?"

The Doctor threw the coat over his hospital gown. It looked quite ridiculous, but Melissa did not feel like laughing at all. His face was quite serious. "You've done all you can, and that's far more than anyone could ever expect of you. If you hadn't have come in, I would have been taken to a place where escape was impossible. More impossible than this. Thank you." He got up out of bed. "I made a promise a while ago. I promised myself that I wouldn't let anyone else come with me. Bad things happen. I lose everyone."

"Well, that's what happens, isn't it?"

"It gets old."

Melissa rolled her eyes. "I know."

"Now, you'd better get out of here. If Dr. Smith sees you with me... it may not go well. I'll wait a while, make it look like I've escaped on my own."

Melissa nodded. "Okay." She backed away slowly, dragging her unwilling feet. There was too many questions. She hated unanswered questions that stayed unanswered. That frustrated her to no end. If she let the Doctor go right now, she would never get to know who he was, _what_ he was.

"Go!" the Doctor said, his face becoming a little stern.

Melissa sighed and left the room. Well, it couldn't be helped. She didn't want to get into trouble for stopping the MI5 for doing whatever it was it was doing. She had already saved the world once today.

"Well?" Nurse Lisa asked. She looked at her expectantly.

"He won't be needing that Ativan," Melissa said. "I got him what he wanted. He's a lot better now."

"Oh? What did he want?"

"His coat."

"WHAT!" a voice exploded from right in front of them. Nurse Lisa nearly fell off her chair. Dr. Smith was leaning over the counter, glaring at her through his dark sunglasses. "You gave him his COAT?"

Melissa took a deep breath. Uh oh, this was not good at all. "I don't see what's so wrong about that," she said. "I mean, it's his coat."

"You don't know what could be in that coat!"

"I was watching! He didn't do anything wrong or dangerous. Mental patients have the same rights as you and I! He could refuse to take his medicine and you'd be powerless to force it on him!"

"Melissa does have a point, Dr. Smith," Nurse Lisa said critically.

"Since when were you his lawyer?" Dr. Smith sneered. "You're a nurse, not an advocate!"

"Oh, I am!" Nurse Lisa said, standing up. "Nurses have a legal responsibility to watch you doctors and catch you if you do anything wrong."

"This isn't just any patient," Dr. Smith said levelly. "This is a very _special_ patient, a very _violent_ patient. I've done all that is necessary to keep him and the staff around him safe."

"Yeah, while he has a potentially lethal arrhythmia and can get life-threatening pneumonia from that ventilator!"

Dr. Smith turned on his heel. "I'll go see if I can fix the damage."

Melissa's eyes widened. He was heading for room 102, but the Doctor hadn't come out yet! She needed to buy him some time. "Say, does he really need that ventilator?" she asked, stepping between him and the door.

"I'm a doctor, you silly girl!"

"Yes, but you're human. You know, to err is human. Even doctors make mistakes. In fact, they make them quite often. That's why we have nurses."

Dr. Smith was not pleased. "You're not even a nurse yet. You're a student. You may not even graduate."

Melissa bit her lip. "Yeah, that's true, but I've done my research. Ventilators can cause pneumonia, and insurance doesn't cover that, does it? Besides, there's a big poster out there bragging about how this hospital has been ventilator-associated pneumonia free for one whole year. I don't think they'll be happy if you change that."

"I won't. I'm transferring him out of here as soon as I see what you've done. You won't have to worry about it."

"Why does he need a ventilator?" Melissa said as Dr. Smith moved closer. "I mean, there's nothing in his chart about it." Well, there was hardly _anything_ in his chart.

"I have my reasons," Dr. Smith snarled.

Suddenly, the room door opened and the Doctor looked out. Dr. Smith saw him immediately and began to shout "Code White! Code White!" A dozen bewhildered heads appeared. One of them belonged to Miss Gabriella. The Doctor observed this all in seconds and acted quickly but reluctantly.

"One step further and you'll lose her!"

Melissa gasped. This was not what she was expecting. When she was packing up her books, brushing her hair, and eating her cereal, she was expecting a day of humiliation and despondence. She was not expecting to be used as a human shield for... whatever it was that was behind her. She couldn't fit the Doctor into any category in her mind. The device that he had pointed at the ventilator was now at her throat. She didn't know what it could do, or if it was even deadly, but she didn't want to take her chances. Okay, it was scary, but she was on this Doctor's side. After all, anyone who was chained to a bed and muted with an ET tube deserved her sympathy. The rude, nasty Dr. Smith did not.

Dr. Smith grimaced. Melissa had no doubt that he would have charged at the Doctor, disregarding her apparent peril, if there wasn't such a big audience. He would not have made it out of the hospital free with all the staff watching. Poor Miss Gabriella's eyes were just about to pop out and roll away on the floor. "You win this round, Doctor," Dr. Smith growled. He spoke quietly, so only the Doctor, Melissa, and possibly Nurse Lisa could hear. "But you will be defeated. We have your TARDIS."

"Yep," the Doctor said. "But for how long? Move forward." He whispered the last sentence to Melissa.

Melissa slowly walked forward and edged around the corner. "Oh, Dad'll love this," she griped. "I can kiss my nursing dreams goodbye."

"I'm terribly sorry. It was the only thing that came to mind."

Melissa sighed. Well, she knew what to do. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles*.

"Where's the nearest exit?"

"Around the corner." She started to back up, the Doctor gently guiding her. Dr. Smith was nowhere in sight. A woman was waddling down the hall, dragging an oxygen tank behind her. Her jaw dropped when she saw the two of them. Melissa felt a strange urge to laugh. What an eventful hospital stay! That woman would have some story to tell her visitors.

The Doctor found the door and aimed his device at the keypad. It sparked a little, but otherwise seemed undamaged. "Thanks again, Melissa R Brogan, and I'm so sorry," he said, leaping out the door. He flashed her an apologetic smile. "I need to think of some new escape strategies. Running doesn't cut it anymore, it seems. Oh, and by the way, you were never in any danger." He tossed his... thingy into the air, caught it, and then disappeared.

"Melissa!" It was Nurse Lisa, running towards her. There was practically a crowd after her.

"Melissa, are you alright?" Miss Gabriella said, looking at her with wide-eyed concern.

"I'm fine," Melissa said. "He didn't hurt me."

"Don't worry, the police are coming straight away," Nurse Lisa said.

With a howl of rage, Dr. Smith flung himself at the door, which was now locked again. "How do you open this thing?"

A nurse aide punched in the code and he was off in a flash.

"Melissa, how about I call your dad?" Miss Gabriella said. "He can come pick you up. You've had quite a shock."

"No!" Melissa protested. "I'll be fine."

"Gabriella, the police will want a statement from her," Nurse Lisa said.

"Only if she's up to it!" Miss Gabriella snapped. "Melissa, it's perfectly understandable if you want to go home. You don't have much else to do."

"I-I don't think I can tell the police anything," Melissa said. "Everything's mixed up." True, she was quite bewildered. What had just happened, and who was the Doctor? Additionally, she didn't want Dr. Smith to find out exactly what she did know. He might do something terrible to her. She gave them a shaky smile. "Well, since my patient's gone, can I have another go at an assessment?"

Miss Gabriella gazed at her intently. "If you feel up to it, I suppose you can. Let's go to the cafeteria for right now, okay? Get something to drink."

A bottle of Seven-Up sounded rather good to Melissa, so she followed. However, they had only gone a few feet before a muffled explosion startled them. "What the..." another student, Brittany, said.

"Code Red, Soiled Utility second floor," the automated voice said over the speaker as alarms began to ring. "Code Red, Soiled Utility second floor. Code Red, Soiled Utility second floor."

"This has got to be the most interesting clinical day I've ever had," Miss Gabriella said, looking at the ceiling.

"Soiled Utility, that's right by ICU, isn't it?" Nurse Lisa asked, eyes wide. "Someone should shut off the oxygen or else we'll have an inferno!"

"I'll go upstairs and see if they need any help," Miss Gabriella said. "Melissa, round up the other students on this floor. If we're not evacuating, I want y'all to go outside."

"Go, Melissa!"

Melissa needed no more urging. She turned around, passing room 102 again. She didn't pause or look in. There was no time for speculation. "Robert, Miss Gabriella wants us to meet out in the front parking lot."

"I'll be right there," Robert said. He was helping his patient into a wheelchair to be ready to evacuate. "Mr. Shaw, how about a little fresh air? It's quite nice outside."

"Bu-But the fi-fire's on the sec-second floor," the elderly Mr. Shaw said.

"Well, your nurse may have her hands full, and I can't come back in and help her once I leave. Besides, it won't do you any harm."

Mr. Shaw nodded, not too upset by this suddenly planned excursion.

Melissa had just enough time to alert the other students before they heard the "Code Red all clear" paged overhead. "Well, I guess that's that," she said.

Robert looked down at Mr. Shaw. "Do you still want to go out?"

Mr. Shaw nodded and smiled lopsidedly.

Melissa marched back to the nursing station, found a head of curly red hair, and made her way straight toward it. "What happened? Was that a drill?"

Nurse Lisa shook her head. "No, it wasn't. It was the real thing. I just got down from there. There was a whole lot of smoke. I think it was your renegade patient."

"What does he have against dirty sheets?" Melissa asked with a frown.

Nurse Lisa shrugged. "Who knows what was going through his schizophrenic mind? Mind you, Dr. Smith was in an awful state. He was screaming so loudly that some nurse was about to use the clinical override for some Valium for him. Maybe he took it personally. Maybe there was something valuable in there." She shrugged again. "Maybe _he's_ the real loony."

Melissa pondered this. She didn't think that the Doctor was that insane. His speech earlier struck her as very coherent and believable. Persecutory delusions or delusions of grandeur would be a little less... concrete. And then there was the creepy, unbalanced Dr. Smith. A story of a group of suspicious people in dark sunglasses made a lot of sense when one person with dark sunglasses was keeping a perfectly healthy man tied up in a bed with an unnecessary tube down his throat.

"All right, I think that's enough excitement for today," Miss Gabriella said. "I think we should get going."

Melissa gaped at her. "But it's not even noon! Isn't there a limit to how many hours you can miss of clinical?"

"Yes, but this is a totally different circumstance. I doubt I can get everyone together to go another three hours. I'm sure Mrs. O'Connor would allow this."

So, Melissa and all the other students gathered in the front lobby. Many were chatting excitedly, looking a little stunned. Some were silent, staring into space. Most of the people who were talking were pestering the ones she recognized as having been on the second floor. They were looking confused, frustrated, and annoyed. Melissa watched them quietly from the corner. She had her own thinking to do. This whole day lacked resolution. It wasn't finished.

"Okay, how about we go to Los Cucos?" Miss Gabriella said. "It's right down the road. I can see we need to talk a bit. And calm down before the drive home."

They all followed her out the building. A group slightly less than a dozen sauntered out, teal pants and white tops glowing in the sun. Melissa looked over her shoulder at the hospital. There was no long brown coat flapping in the wind. She sighed. There was so many questions to ask, so much she didn't know. It would nag at her for weeks. Still, there was no helping it. If the Doctor was as smart as he seemed, he wouldn't be hanging around for Dr. Smith to get him. Unless he was very, very smart. She shrugged and went into her car. Perhaps if she got queso this time she could forget it sooner.

Four hours later, it was 3:30, and the nursing students were long gone. So was the fire department, called in to do the investigation, and most of the police. A couple of men in plainclothes were lingering, trying to detect any suspicious activity that could explain the mysterious fire. It had been extinguished quickly before the firefighters even arrived. About three RNs went at the flames with fire extinguishers and quickly beat it into submission. The LVNs and CNAs were preparing the nearby patients for a hasty transfer, if it was necessary. Thankfully, it wasn't.

It was warm and humid, courtesy of the Gulf of Mexico. It was weather for shorts and t-shirts, definitely not three-piece suits. Adding a coat on top of that would make any Houstonian gasp in shock. However, it was feasible, since most Texans were very accustomed to powerful air conditioners. This man did not seem to be bothered much by the heat. His brown pin-striped suit showed no sign of sweat. He looked up at the building with a grin, strolling around it sedately.

If Melissa had been there, she would have a hard time recognizing the helpless patient in 102. If anyone passed him by, they would have thought he was the son of a patient, since the majority of the patients were over seventy. However, she may have still recognized the unruly brown hair and the expressive brown eyes, but she wasn't there.

The Doctor lingered for a while, waiting. He had heard the nurses talking about the students earlier and he learned that they usually left at about now. He owed Melissa R Brogan an explanation. That stupid, stupid move would have shaken her greatly. Why couldn't he have thought of anything better? Honestly, threatening an innocent girl's life, a girl who had even helped him out, was the lowest he had ever dropped to, even if her life was never in any danger from him. She wouldn't have known any differently. He really, really needed to talk with her right now. Plus, she needed to tell him something. What was her middle name? That big black "R" on her nametag must stand for something. He knew it had no bearing whatsoever on his escape and the survival of mankind, but he really wanted to know. He, the Doctor, liked to find things out. Besides, she would ask him so many questions, it was only fair for him to ask her some questions, too. Even if they were as silly as "What's your middle name?"

He waited for half an hour, but no one in teal and white came out of the building. He was too late. Of course, he should have thought of it earlier! They would have been sent home early because of the fire. It wasn't his fault, the fire. He had just been investigating, following a signal with his sonic screwdriver, when he had found a device. A very advanced, sophisticated device. A device that no 21st century human could make. A device that Dr. Smith would dearly miss. Of course, to foil whatever plans the man had, he had to disable it. It spat out sparks, and some of those sparks caught on the sheets. Oh, he had helped out. He had pulled the alarm and stamped out some of the fire, but he had to get out before he was caught _again_. Thankfully, everyone was too busy to notice him. He escaped quite easily, and now here he was. Well, there was no point in waiting any longer. He walked away, already thinking up a plan on how to get the TARDIS back.

In a dark room, Dr. Smith was meeting with a younger man who also wore dark sunglasses. They were both looking at a computer.

"YOU FAILED IN YOUR MISSION!" a harsh voice came from the computer. "THE DOCTOR HAS ESCAPED!"

"Yes, but for how long?" Dr. Smith said, grinning slyly. "I have a plan."

"EXPLAIN!"

The younger man handed him a box, which he opened to reveal a bunch of translucent yellow goop. "This is a poison toxic to only Time Lords. It's very potent. If he's anywhere in a hundred-foot radius of this, he will be affected most severely. In fact, he may feel its effects anywhere from one to five miles away, but he won't be incapacitated."

"HOW WILL YOU USE THIS TO FIND THE DOCTOR?"

Dr. Smith grinned evilly. "By giving it in some form to the humans. He can't stay in hiding forever. He will try to find his ship. And you've mentioned his curiosity and idealism. He will try to put a stop to our plans. We have enough here for about 15,000 people. With all those people running about, he's bound to run into one of them. If one so much as drives past him on the street, he will collapse."

"THIS PLAN IS FEASIBLE. YOU WILL CAPTURE THE DOCTOR."

"Yes, and you'll be the first to know."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

"Very good, Melissa," Miss Gabriella said. "You've done a 180 degree turn."

Melissa put her stethoscope around her neck, trying not to smile goofily. She had done it. She had completed her assessment flawlessly. She was still in the nursing program.

Only a couple weeks later they were waiting in the cafeteria for their final grades. No one looked too anxious, as they already knew that they had passed. Melissa smiled. She would be happy with anything she got. She expected to get a "C", the lowest passing grade, because of her difficulties. Well, it was better than a "D" or "F".

"Good job, Melissa," Miss Gabriella said, handing her the evaluation.

Melissa smiled even wider. A nice, rounded "B" was scrawled at the top. She had done better than she expected. She would get an "A" next semester, probably.

They went to Los Cucos again. They laughed and chatted, sharing stories about their most memorable patients. Abigail told them all about the time she spilled a food tray on the floor. Thankfully, the patient had already eaten. Robert recalled the struggle he had at first with the gowns the hospital had. There were so many buttons that he didn't know which hole was which!

"I think Melissa is the most improved student," Miss Gabriella said once.

"Yeah, she should get a prize," Brittany said.

"No, I'm fine, really," Melissa said, blushing. This was all very unnecessary. "Besides, there's no prizes around here."

Robert took a chip, dipped it in guacamole, and presented it to her gravely. "Congratulations," he said.

Everyone laughed as Melissa took the chip and bit into it.

"I think Melissa did really well, especially with that kooky patient," Abigail said. "I have no idea what I would have done if someone took _me_ hostage."

Melissa looked down at her food, frowning. Miss Gabriella watched her and leaned closer. "Are you doing okay?"

Melissa nodded. "I'm fine. It wasn't that scary, really. I don't think he would have hurt me."

"If you have any problems, feel free to tell someone."

"Miss Gabriella, I don't need any help. Besides, if I see a psychiatrist, then I'll have to wait five years until I can work."

"That's for hospitalization. I'm sure that you'd be fine to work as soon as you're out of school."

"Thanks, Miss Gabriella, but I'm fine. I just... wonder sometimes." She wondered who the Doctor was. She wondered what he was doing here. She wondered if it could have gone any differently, if she could have done better. Well, she'd never know, would she? She focused her attention on her refried beans. Where was the Doctor, and what was he doing now?

-CR-

The Doctor sat on the bed. Well, this was one direction he wasn't planning on taking. Without the TARDIS, he was stranded. He had no place to go and most of his highly sensitive tracking equipment was in there. The only thing he had now was the sonic screwdriver. Oh, the sonic screwdriver was a wonderful piece of technology, and he seldom used anything else. However, to find those strange humans he needed something else. The sonic screwdriver would do for now, but it would take a long time. As for being stranded, well, that wasn't too bad. He could find a way to survive. He was in a hotel now, planning another course of action. One that he didn't necessarily like.

He had to get a job. He could survive without food a lot longer than humans, but it still wasn't a good idea. He could also find a fairly nice apartment, one that he could leave as soon as he found the TARDIS. He needed a private place where he could fiddle around and make some gadgets to track down his ship. If it was his own place, no one would barge in. Besides, hijacking an ATM with his sonic screwdriver was wrong, just wrong. He had done it once, but he had cajoled his conscience into silence by saying that, because of the many times he had saved this planet, he deserved a few extra pounds (well, here that would be dollars). However, he did not want to do that again.

Besides, if he got the right kind of job, he could keep tabs on those suspicious people. Because he was the Doctor, he could qualify for pretty much anything. He was brilliant in that way. Media, medicine, and law enforcement were the three most likely positions where he'd have a fair warning on what they were doing. Hmmm, well, being a television reporter and having his face on the TV all the time would probably not be a good idea, because of those people who had taken the TARDIS. As for law enforcement, well, he hated guns. So, the only one left was medicine.

The Doctor grinned. He, the Doctor, was going to become a doctor. That was ironic. Dr. Doctor!

-CR-

~July~

The man was watching the girl closely. She didn't look too bad. Actually, she looked quite pretty, if one did not judge according to society's dictates. Lustrous brown hair and gentle curves. She was well-built, not heavy, but not so light that a stiff wind was likely to blow her over. She looked like she could manage well on her own. She was with a woman in a garish dress and blonde hair. Her hot red lips were flapping continuously in some tale. She held the girl close, gesturing at her occasionally. The girl was obviously the topic of her conversation.

The man did not want to be here, at church. Of all places to carry out his mission, a church! Those simple-minded, idealistic people, championing the cause of the poor, weak, and... different. They were too different. He knew that, at one time, he had been different, too, but now he wasn't. He had a purpose. A supreme purpose. And this girl was part of it.

The girl was a very useful target. She was the most likely to encounter the Doctor. She had met him before, and she had the attributes that the Doctor most valued: Open-mindedness, acceptance, compassion, determination, a thirst for adventure, and a drive to save the world. The Doctor was weak. He relied on companions for comfort. He would not be able to resist such a kindred spirit.

The girl shrugged off the woman's arm and disappeared into the crowd. He saw her go to someone around her own age, a young woman. It was time to act.

"Excuse me, ma'am, but do you know that charming young lady who just left?" he asked.

The showy woman turned around and smiled eagerly. "Oh, yes! I'm a friend of her father's, a rather _close_ friend." She winked. "Her name's Melissa. Not the looker, but she's sharp."

"Actually, she's quite pretty."

"Oh, you really think so? Well, she's available, and no one seems really interested. Quite a shame." Another wink. "She's an odd child. So much potential, but she's not living up to it. Maybe you could point her down the right path."

He felt rather uncomfortable with this woman's overly honest, gossipy approach. Goodness, he had just met her! Still, such things were irrelevant to the mission. Why should human social rules bother him? Soon, there would be no use for them.

"Mind you, I think she's a little disturbed," she whispered, leaning in close. "She had a very frightening experience just a month ago. Some psycho took her hostage at the hospital. And then he blew up the place. Ever since then, she's been moping around, staring into space. It's PTSD, I tell you, but she doesn't want any help. Maybe you can fix her."

"I don't need fixing, Miss Megan," Melissa said, appearing right at the woman's shoulder. Her face was blank, but inside she felt the familiar hurt and rage that came when this woman spoke of her in a patronizing, pitying way. "Hello."

"Melissa, this is Mr..." Miss Megan said, blushing.

"Russell," the man said. He extended his hand and smiled. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too," Melissa said, smiling slightly. She timidly shook his hand. "Why are you wearing sunglasses indoors?"

"Um... it's a ... I have a ... defect," Russell stammered. "Yes, a defect. Not very nice to look at."

Melissa nodded and she no longer stared at him suspiciously. However, she still remembered Dr. Smith. He wore sunglasses, and he wasn't the only one. The Doctor had said that there were more. Still, Russell could be telling the truth. There could be no link between the two of them. "I didn't see you in Sunday School. We have a college class."

"Oh, I went with a friend. He was in another group."

Melissa smiled. "Well, you seem to be about my age. We, the college class, were just about to go out for lunch. It's Miss Brenda's treat, so you don't have to pay. Want to come?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," Russell said. This was going to be easier than he thought.

-CR-

"A doctor of what, exactly?" the portly, middle aged man asked. He wore large glasses and his hair was receding.

The Doctor grinned. "Oh, pretty much everything. I dabble."

"You seem awful young to have so much experience," the man said, scrutinizing the psychic paper and the resume the Doctor had thought up the night before.

The Doctor shrugged. "I'm not as young as I look. So, do you have a position?"

"Oh, we have plenty of openings, but you're just one person. Well, let me think. I suppose the place we need you the most would be the emergency department."

"Oh, I'm brilliant with emergencies! I basically live on adrenaline."

"Be careful with that stuff," the man said with a hint of a smile. "It can kill you, you know."

"Yes, but other things can do that far better."

"So," the man said, handing him a paper. "Fill out this form. I'm sure you'll hear from us again soon. As I said before, we're desperate. Not many people want to hang around Sunny Plains."

"Don't see why not," the Doctor said, pretending to pore over the form. Of course, with his speed-reading skills, he had already read it before it came to his hand. "It's a lovely place. So many trees around. Good thing I don't have any allergies."

The man smiled. "Welcome to Sunny Plains Medical Center, Dr. Sam Johnson."

-CR-

August

Melissa got off the plane. She smelled the air. Already she was beginning to miss Indonesia. As soon as she had stepped out of the terminal in that exotic country, there was a different feel in the air. It smelled sweet, like spices, and it was warm and dry. The land was flat and open and the airport was small with a peaked roof. Then they were on the wild streets of Surabaya, weaving through the neverending stream of buses and mopeds. The traffic was such that even a veteran commuter accustomed to Houston traffic would have a panic attack on the streets of Surabaya. Now it was just the old 59, a wide, grey highway with no big old buildings or palm trees along it.

She looked at her money. Yep, just plain old green bills. Nothing like the vibrant colors of the rupias bills. The numbers on the bills made her feel rich, until she saw the pricetags on the items she wanted to buy. Rupias were miniscule in value compared to the American dollar. She still had a price label of a necklace she had bought. She was going to show it to her friends. They would probably fall over in shock before she explained the currency.

She also missed the food. Such elaborate meals. Fried fish paste (crowpoke, she thought it was called), the special baked fish that was so tasty, the sushi they had enjoyed that one night, and basically every other dish she had tried. She had tried mostly everything, except for one dish. It looked pretty good, until she looked closer... and it looked back. A multitude of tiny eyes were staring at her. They belonged to tiny fish. She did not want to eat something that looked at her. Still, all that food, the eyeless food, was so much better than sandwhiches. She wondered if she could ever eat American food again. Well, she could afford to lose a little more weight.

There was a welcoming party for her. Well, for everyone. It was a good-sized group that had been on this journey. A couple of people had already left for their own home states, but most of the team was here. She could see her dad, Miss Meagan (sigh), and... Russell. Well, that was a surprise. Well, maybe not too surprising. He had worked his way into her outer circle of friends, the people who she could carry on a conversation with but whom she didn't know that well. He seemed to be interested in her. She didn't know if she was interested in him, but she did know that she found his interest a little scary.

To make things even more unsettling, he was heading towards her right now. "Hey, I missed you."

"Well, sorry I can't say the same, but we were really busy," Melissa said, trying to be polite. "I was in a different country, lots of things to see and do."

"Yeah, I suppose, but us here, we aren't busy at all. I was stuck here just thinking about you the whole time."

Melissa stared at him. "I really don't think I'm worth that."

"We'll just see about that. I've... I've got something special for you. Something to help you remember me when we're separated again." He reached into his pocket and took out a necklace. It had a small, bean-shaped pendant that glimmered in the light.

"That's very kind of you," Melissa said. It was true, it was very kind, and she was touched.

"Go on, try it," Russell said, smiling.

Melissa felt awkward. It often looked like he was smiling, but she could never see his eyes because of his sunglasses, so she never knew if he was smiling or not. She put the necklace on and the pendant rested in just the right place, right above the collar of her t-shirt.

"It looks splendid!" Russell gasped. "You know, I think we should do something together, to celebrate. Just the two of us. I think we'd be great together. What do you think?"

Melissa sighed. "Russell, I've just got home from a twenty-hour flight. I hardly slept, and plane food's disgusting. Not tonight."

Russell turned away, looking like a rejected puppy.

"What about some other time? When I'm better rested? Come on, I'll be in a much better mood." Perhaps it was all her. Russell was a very nice young man. Perhaps his enthusiasm was just his way of making friends or, in this case, girlfriends. Perhaps she should loosen up. She smiled. "Come on and help me with my luggage. That's why we have men around, right?"

Russell gladly helped her with her luggage. A few other people greeted her and hugged her, but she was too tired for it to make an impression on her. Besides Russell, that is. Soon she was sitting in the front seat of the truck Miss Meagan drove (yes, she drove a truck), dozing off.

"Russell's really missed you," Miss Meagan said.

"What?" Melissa mumbled, opening her eyes lazily.

"He's been hanging around our house, just asking how you were doing. He even sent you a few emails, but you never replied."

Melissa's eyes flew open. "Oh." She had not had a chance to check her email or facebook at all since leaving Houston. Well, they did have wireless in Singapore, but she had no computer. The girl she shared the room with was quite friendly and would have shared her laptop, but Melissa had been too tired to bother about email. "Yeah, we were really busy. I'll check it when I get home."

"I sure hope you will," Miss Meagan said. Melissa rolled her eyes when she heard the chastising tone. Oh, here it came, The Talk. "He's really hurt by the way you treat him. You seem really distant. I know you're the quiet type and life's been hard, but you've got to get out in the world. Make some friends, go on some dates. Get drunk if you have to!"

"I'm underage," Melissa chuckled. "I've already got friends, Miss Meagan."

"Yes, but they're church friends. They're very... one-sided."

"I wouldn't call them one-sided. One's a fanatic about musicals and one's really into cultural diversity and... well, there are others."

"That's not what I meant. I meant... they encourage you in your thinking."

"That's a good thing, isn't it? They keep me strong."

"Yes, but strong in the wrong way. You're... different."

"Different's fine, all my friends are different."

"You're not so much different as you are... weird. Sorry, but that's the truth."

"So what? I'm weird. What's wrong with weird? Weird's gotten me to this place. I'm happy where I am." She sighed. "Miss Meagan, you seem to be very critical of me. You're not happy with the way I am. I'm almost nineteen now. I know who I am. Why can't you see that?"

Miss Meagan's eyes turned to hers, and for the first time since Melissa had met her they were heavy with sorrow. "I was like you once. Different. Different means pain. Different means loneliness. People don't like different people."

"You were in high school. I'm in college now. I had a rough time before, but now it's better. It's easier. Brainy people are valued. I'm happy enough as I am. And even when I was all lonely, I wasn't always miserable."

"Melissa, you have so much potential. When I look at you, I see a princess hidden away. If you only trust me, I can let that princess free. Everyone will love you. But if you stay brown, boring, and quiet, no one'll see you as that princess." She parked the truck and looked at her gravely, waiting for her response.

Melissa snapped her seatbelt off. "Miss Meagan, I don't need everyone to love me. And a princess is still a princess no matter what she looks like." She hopped out of the truck and slammed the door.

Miss Meagan rolled her window down. "This is about that Doctor person again, isn't it?"

Melissa stopped and looked at the concrete driveway beneath her feet.

"He's only caused you pain. I mean, look at what he did to you. It's been a couple months and you still can't forget him. He's dangerous, Melissa. I sure hope he got caught."

Melissa turned around. "It's not about the Doctor. That's something totally different."

"You've been so unhappy since that happened. He's damaged you."

"He had no choice! I'm not unhappy, I'm just... not through."

"Not through? What on earth's that supposed to mean?"

"It's not finished. There's so much more to know. I may never know it all."

"Melissa, you're not making any sense. That was a scary situation. You shouldn't be talking like that. You're – you're probably still in shock. Yes, that's what it is, shock!"

Melissa rolled her eyes. "Yes, it was scary, but Dr. Smith was the scariest. He was the one that yelled at me. The Doctor was quite kind."

"How can someone who used you as a human shield be kind?"

"One who apologized profusely afterwards." Melissa watched Miss Meagan shake her head. "I'm sorry that we disagree so much. It's just... I really don't think we know anything about this Doctor person."

"Melissa!" Miss Meagan shouted, but the door had already slammed shut. Goodness, that girl was fast. Miss Meagan sighed and then chewed on her bottom lip. There had to be some way to get Melissa free from this Doctor fellow. There must be someone who knew about him, who knew how dangerous he was. Well, she will find out. She will find out who this Doctor was and warn Melissa about him. Hopefully he would never return for her.

-CR-

September

"Just relax, Mrs. Swann. You've done marvelously well so far. It'll all be over very soon."

"How's she doing?"

"She's fully dilated. Fetus is LOA and at +3. It could be any minute now."

"Is the doctor on his way?"

"He was notified fifteen minutes ago. He's probably in the parking lot right now."

"Is the nursery ready?"

"Yep."

The newly arrived nurse leaned forward with a smile. "Hi! I'm Tara Matthews from the nursery." She shook hands with the sweaty, wide-eyed woman on the bed and the quiet, wide-eyed man at her side. "So, you're new to this whole mothering thing?"

The exhausted but excited woman nodded.

"I'm sure you'll do wonderfully. I can see it in your eyes. Your labor went by pretty fast. You'll probably have this baby out before lunch."

Melissa was out in the hall. A nurse came out of the room and gestured to her. "She's almost ready!"

"Does she want me to watch?" Melissa asked.

"Oh, they have no problem with it," the nurse said, wheeling the tray of sterile items into the room for the doctor. "Get your gown on. It can get pretty messy. One gynecologist I heard of got it all in her face."

"Eugh!" Melissa said. "Will I be doing anything?"

"Oh, not much. Just holding a leg."

Melissa walked into the room. The bright morning light was just gracing the windowsill. It was nearly noon. One nurse had a hand on the woman's belly, watching the tracing on the monitor. "Where's the doctor?" Melissa asked.

"He should be coming very soon. It's been almost forty minutes since her last contraction."

Melissa smiled at the woman. "It's almost over. I'm sure you're looking forward to it ending."

"Yeah, I never thought I could make it this far," the woman said.

"It's for a good cause. That's a brand-new, special little boy in there right now."

"Yes. Very special."

"Okay!" an energetic, cheery British voice said suddenly. "How's Wonder-woman doing?"

"Wonderfully, Dr. Johnson," the nurse said.

Melissa looked up and nearly fainted in shock. It couldn't be... that wasn't... he couldn't possibly be... _her patient!_ She had to be mistaken. The young man with messy brown hair who had laid so helplessly on that hospital bed could not be here in a long white coat preparing to deliver a baby. That was just ridiculous! The Doctor should be far away, hiding from those crazy men in dark sunglasses.

"You're just in time, doctor," the nurse with her fingers on the woman's belly said. "I think I feel another contraction coming on. Do you feel it, too?" She addressed the last sentence to the woman on the bed.

"Yes!" the woman moaned.

"Now, hands behind your knees. When you feel like pushing, pull on your knees. Melissa, hold her leg like – yes, that's perfect. When I tell you to, push her leg back."

In only two seconds, the comfortable bed transformed. The legs swung out to reveal the tuft of hair that belonged to the new baby. He was crowning. Some fluids dripped off and fell into the biohazard bag beneath the bed.

"Okay, are we ready?" Dr. Johnson asked. His eyes were on the monitor which showed the rising contraction. "Push!"

The woman curled around her shrinking womb, eyes shut tight. Melissa peered over her leg as she held it back. There was the top of the head, just about to burst free, Dr. Johnson's fingers circling it to help guide it out. Then, it receded a little as the woman took a breath, but the contraction was not over. Again she pushed, again the little tuft of hair almost made it out, and again it had receded.

"How long do you think this'll take?" Dr. Johnson asked.

The Asian nurse, the one who had been with the patient all morning, was quite confident. "Three tries."

"That fast, is she?"

"Oh, for a primip, very fast," another nurse quipped.

Actually, it took seven tries. Melissa watched intently. It looked like that little tuft of hair was never going to get out, when all of the sudden a face appeared. It was a chubby face, eyes shut tight in a grimace. A bulb syringe sucked at his nostrils and mouth. He grimaced even harder. He did not like it, but Melissa smiled. That baby looked healthy. His dusky color would recede once he began to breathe on his own. Dr. Johnson's hand quickly swept around the boy's neck. "No cord. You're good to go."

The rest of the baby slipped out easily. His arms and legs flailed in the cold air. He began to bawl before the cord was even cut. Dr. Johnson laid him on his mother's stomach as he cut the cord. The new father watched with moist eyes and the mother reached out to her baby, barely a second old. Her fingers lingered over his back, longing to touch him yet afraid that he would vanish like a dream.

"He looks great," Miss Tara said.

The new mother gently caressed the moist back of her baby. Then the towel came, and the baby was laid on the scale. Then, dry and wrapped up, he was placed in his mother's arms.

"Have you ever held a baby before?" Dr. Johnson asked.

"I had two younger sisters," the woman said. "I was old enough to hold them."

"Then I'd say you're an expert. I mean, just look at you! You'll be brilliant parents, both of you."

"In about half an hour I'll need to take him to the nursery," Miss Tara said. "I need to give him a bath and check him over. And you need to rest. Don't worry, we won't keep him there long. Are you breast or bottle?"

The woman looked at her husband. "I think breast. I heard that it's better."

"Good. Why don't you practice right now? I can help."

The other nurse shooed them out. "Come on, they'll want their privacy."

Melissa felt as if she were in a dream. That was a brand new life in there, only minutes old. The faces of the new parents were unforgettable. The love and awe in their eyes almost brought tears to hers. The long hours of pain and fatigue were over, vanished like a bad dream with the coming of daylight. The nine months of carrying that precious life, learning how to think like a mother, and realizing that it was not a dream were over. The baby was out. Life would never be the same again. Hopefully they would be able to look back at this time in twenty years and feel no regrets, only joy. But now, looking at them, it seemed that nothing could go wrong, that they would love their child forever and he would love them. They had been through so much together already, and they were bonded together with bands stronger than steel. A whole lot more comfortable, too. He depended on them, and they would not bear to neglect them. He wasn't just a baby, he was _their_ baby, a unique mixture of them both that no one had ever seen before.

She was so wrapped up in her thinking that she did not notice a figure in white slump against the wall at the corner of her vision, barely remaining on his feet.

"Dr. Johnson, you don't look too well," the nurse asked. "Have you ever seen a birth before?"

Melissa turned and saw that Dr. Johnson looked a little pale and clammy, besides being obviously unsteady on his feet. "No, I've helped out in a couple," he said. "It's probably the heat. I'm not used to it."

"Take a seat," the nurse said, taking his arm and leading him to the nurse's station. "Melissa, go get some water."

"I'll be right back," Melissa called over her shoulder. She had already thought of getting water. Water always seemed to help if she was light-headed, which did not happen often. She returned promptly.

"You did great in there," the nurse said quietly to Melissa as Dr. Johnson sipped at his cup. "Do you think you want to be an L&D nurse?"

Melissa shook her head. "I think I'll do better with acute illnesses, people who are actually sick. That's what interests me. That and psychology. I don't think I can deal with the pain and emotions of labor. But the birth was... amazing! I mean, now I want to have a baby of my own right now."

The nurse laughed. "I think you're a little too young for that."

"Yeah, I'll wait until I'm out of school, in a house, married. Maybe I'll try L&D nursing sometime. Like a vacation."

"It's not all happy stories. Some babies just don't make it. And others aren't wanted. Just last week there was one woman who didn't even want to look at her own child."

Melissa gasped. "But that's horrible!"

"I know. I felt like slapping her and taking the baby home myself. But stupid people do stupid things sometimes. We just have to help them deal with the consequences."

"I hope that that child gets a good home."

"I do, too."

-CR-

The Doctor didn't know what had hit him. He had been feeling under the weather for days now. Maybe even weeks. It was like a head cold that just lingered in the sinuses. He was constantly tired. Well, less energetic than normal, let's put it that way. His head felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he had a continuous dull but faint headache. Sometimes he felt a little dizzy, but the worst symptom he had noticed was time confusion.

A Time Lord just wasn't a Time Lord without his sense of time. They were aware of the turning of the planets, the ebb and flow of time. If he was suddenly taken to some mysterious planet, he could intuitively sense where and when he was, to some degree. But now he felt like he was walking in a fog. Sometimes it was denser, other times it was almost nonexistent, but it was always there, and it was bothering him to no end.

It had gotten worse as soon as he had stepped into the room. When he had walked the halls, he had felt the time confusion deepen, but when he came into the room it was like he was suddenly struck blind. Sure, he could still see, but it was just _stuff_ he was seeing, not context. It was like he was looking at a series of snapshots, very confusing snapshots. All his other symptoms had worsened, too. He had a pounding headache, and it was very hard to keep himself steady. If it had gone on much longer, he was sure he would have passed out.

He thought about it as he drained his cup. It must be some kind of airborne toxin. It had been heavily concentrated in that room. It must be specific only to Time Lords. None of the other occupants had noticed it. Humans did not rely on a time sense. They had some that made them aware of time passing, but they would still be able to function without it. They would simply accuse themselves of losing track of the time or being absent-minded. It was nothing to them, but it was everything to Time Lords. That was what made them, well, Time Lords.

Oh, there was that girl again. That student nurse. She looked so familiar, and that name, Melissa. She must be the one who had been at that nursing home so long ago. She had saved his life then, and he had never thanked her. Well, he would wait and see if he could manage that. First, he had to find the TARDIS. Maybe a quick ride in it would suffice. It wouldn't be an actual trip. Just a little jaunt back to her home. That would be a good thank you, and an explanation. If he tried to tell her who he was, she wouldn't believe him. The TARDIS was much better at that.

"Have I seen you before?" Melissa asked.

"Maybe," the Doctor said. "I travel around quite a lot. I usually work in the ER. A few weeks ago that woman came in in premature labor. It was too early for the fetus to survive. She was desperate, so she agreed to an experimental treatment I had heard of. It succeeded, and she wanted me to do the honors." Actually, the "experimental treatment" was a few centuries before its time, but... she had been so desperate.

"I see. She'll make a good mother. Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine now," the Doctor lied. Actually, he was feeling worse, but not as bad as he had been in that room.

"I guess it'll take you a while to look normal. Have you seen Nurse Sonja?"

"She's in triage," the Doctor said.

Melissa looked over her shoulder. She had just spoken with her instructor, a different one than last semester. She still didn't know her way around the hospital, so the teacher was taking them all to the cafeteria. Melissa didn't want to keep anyone waiting. "Are you going to be here for a while? You know, sitting here?"

"I don't have any pressing duties. You want me to tell her something?"

"Yes. I'm going for lunch. I should be back in half-an-hour."

The Doctor smiled. "Go ahead, enjoy your... whatever it is you've brought. I'll make sure she gets the message."

"I didn't bring anything," Melissa said as she headed down the hall. "The freezer's packed with lasagna, yuck. I'm going to buy something today."

The Doctor stared at her back intently. As soon as she had left, the time confusion had begun to fade. Now that he thought of it, ever since she had come up to him the symptoms had worsened. He had felt wobbly and dizzy, but now he was regaining his strength. That was strange. Whatever the toxin was, the girl was saturated with it. He needed to find out why.

-CR-

They had meatballs that day. Melissa didn't mind meatballs. At least there were some potatoes with it. She took some of both and also some string beans for the green plate special. That and a small carton of skim milk. A nicely balanced meal. If Miss Meagan could see her, she would approve of the milk, but only that. _Why couldn't you have just gone with the salad? There's soooo many calories in mashed potatoes. Come on, dieting will make you look slim and beautiful. Don't you want to be slim and beautiful? Oh, and chatty and outgoing and blonde and popular and blah blah blah..._

_Don't think about Miss Meagan,_ she told herself. _Think about something else. Think about that baby you just saw. Think about what he could be. Think about your plans for the future. Think about the Doctor._ It was so fortunate that Miss Meagan could not read minds. If she had been able to, she would have seen Melissa's thoughts stray down that (seemingly) dangerous trail more often than not as she spoke to her. As it was, Melissa was safe to think of the Doctor. There was an awful lot to think about. There were so many questions, but a few she had already answered. He was a good man, here to save them. He had told her so, and something was driving him. Melissa could sort of tell what was driving people. It wasn't a selfish desire that was driving him, like Miss Meagan or Dr. Smith. It was a good one. Most of the employees at this hospital had that same drive, the same look in their eyes. She hoped that she had it, too. Who was he? He was the Doctor.

Someday, she would figure out just what that meant.

She turned around with her tray and nearly dropped it. Was she hallucinating? There was the Doctor, looking at her through the window. Oh wait, it was just Dr. Johnson, the one who had delivered that boy. He did look an awful lot like the Doctor, but she had only seen him once, and that once wasn't a very good once. It was probably just a resemblance. Her thinking about the Doctor was making her see things. She took her tray out to the table where the others were eating.

"Before you ask, Sonja did get the message," Dr. Johnson said.

Melissa smiled. "Thanks."

Dr. Johnson's eyes travelled towards the teacher. She was a middle-aged woman, and she was wearing blue scrubs, which set her apart from the students. "Are you the teacher of these wonderful students?" he asked, drawing closer.

"Yes," the teacher said, shaking his hand. "My name's Molly Habrock."

"Dr. Sam Johnson," Dr. Johnson said amiably. "I met Melissa at L&D. She did remarkably well."

"Yes. It's a wonder the patient progressed so quickly. They weren't expecting her to deliver until four. We'll be long gone by then."

"I was very surprised when the nurse came out telling everyone that she was at nine centimeters," Melissa said. "It was great! And that fetal demise isn't actually a fetal demise. The baby's doing great."

"Oh, you didn't tell me that!" Mrs. Habrock cried. "That is so fortunate! The mother must be so happy."

"Ah yes, I overheard the nurses talking about her," Dr. Johnson said. "They were pleasantly surprised, too. It seems that she's stabilizing, no contractions since 10:30. Fetal heart tones are still strong."

Melissa smiled. "I certainly hope the baby makes it. It would be terrible if she didn't. I can't imagine losing a kid. But it happens."

"So, how long have you been in school?"

"Second semester in nursing," Melissa said after swallowing a meatball. "I'm almost halfway done."

"Looking forward to finishing?"

Melissa grinned. "Of course! I can't wait to actually do something. But it's kind of scary, too."

"You'll get over it."

"So, are you an OBGYN?" Mrs. Habrock asked.

Dr. Johnson shook his head. "No, I actually work in the emergency room. She met me there, I saved the baby, and she wouldn't let anyone else deliver him."

"Well, that's gratefulness for you."

"Yeah, I suppose."

Melissa scooped up some mashed potatoes in her fork, but a lump decided to fall onto her neck. She wiped it off with a napkin before it could slip under her uniform. "Sorry."

"Accidents happen," Mrs. Habrock said nonchalantly.

Dr. Johnson leaned on the table, his hand close to Melissa's tray. "So, I suppose we might see each other again."

"Well, we don't go into the ER until Nursing III," Melissa said bashfully. "And I might be in another hospital."

"Oh, I don't just stick in the ER all the time while I'm here. You're a great person, Melissa. I'm sure you'll make a brilliant nurse. Now, I've got to leave before Dr. Watts leaves me behind _again_. Goodness, I'm not _that_ late."

"Goodbye," Melissa said.

One of the other students leaned forward, her face illuminated by a sly smile. "Looks like you made quite an impression."

"What? Did I do anything... extraordinary? I just held a leg."

"It's not just _skill_ that impresses a man."

Melissa gaped at her. "You've got to be kidding me. He's a _doctor_, and I'm a student. We're supposed to keep our relationships strictly professional. Besides, I'm taken."

"Come on, a hot, clever doctor, what's wrong with that?"

Melissa grinned. "So, you think he's hot?"

The young lady blushed. "Well, I... I.. maybe I... does it matter?"

"It doesn't, if me and him doesn't, either."

"I suppose it doesn't,"she said, leaning back, defeated and embarrassed.

-CR-

Meanwhile, the Doctor was walking towards a battered car. Dr. Watts was not here yet, which was surprising considering he was usually twenty minutes early. The Doctor opened the unlocked door and sank into the back seat. There was definitely something on that napkin. He took it out of his pocket and looked at it. It was just a napkin, but already his vision was beginning to blur. He put it away, and the symptoms which threatened to snatch him into unconsciousness faded to a dull background murmur. He looked at his hand, which was already breaking out in a rash. _Just a few more hours_, he told himself. That should be enough time to get to his apartment, analyze this poison, and hopefully find a way to counteract it. He needed to be strong to solve this mystery. These people obviously knew a lot about Time Lords. No human could know such things, as they probably came from the Time War. Therefore, the humans weren't humans, or else they were under mind control. Now, who was the main culprit?

He decided to leave the question for later. After he found out what that poison was, and after he recovered a little. He would be able to think better then.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N : Next chapter! Thanks for all the reviews.

School's started, so I won't be updating as often. Probably only every Sunday.

Melissa watches a surgery in this chapter. It's an intense emergency surgery, but I'm not getting very descriptive.

Chapter Four:

Melissa smiled across the table as she sipped her drink. This had not turned out as badly as she thought it would. "Thanks for bringing me here, Russell," she said.

Russell nodded, slightly embarrassed.

They had grown close ever since the trip to Indonesia. In fact, Melissa was even beginning to think of themselves as a couple. It had become official only a week ago. Before, she had looked at these days with trepidation, but now it was totally different. She had little to fear. She and Russell were together, and very little could tear them apart. She felt strongly for him. She wasn't sure if she was in love, but it was some sort of affection. A very loyal affection. After all, he adored her so much that the least she could do was return his feelings. The tiny details that concerned her before like when should they kiss, how often she was supposed to look at him, and what they should talk about took care of themselves. Well, Russell took care of them, and she let him. It was all too advanced for her. Surprisingly, what he did she did not consider too intrusive or overwhelming. They hadn't even kissed yet, which was good because she didn't know what she would do if that transpired.

"It's a nice little restaurant," Russell said. "My family knows the manager personally. We get a discount. And whoever we bring along with us." He winked at her. At least, she thought he winked.

He examined her closely. She was an interesting human specimen. So contradictory to society. If he wasn't on the mission, he may have pursued her as a friend. Not as a girlfriend, though. The part of his mind that was kept so he could mingle with the humans seamlessly recognized her as attractive, but not too attractive. Her hair was tied back into an elegant ponytail with a sparkly scrunchy, and she wore a pink blouse. She did look good in pink. Yellow, too, he had noticed.

He smiled, happy at his progress. She was so comfortable with him. He would find a way to recruit her very soon. She could help them find the Doctor. All they had to do was persuade her. That would be simple. A trail of destruction seemed to follow the Doctor. It wouldn't take many lies to make that evidence look damning.

-CR-

The phantoms of the past circled around him, taunting him. "You said you saved us, but you didn't. You failed. You're no good. Last of the Time Lords, what a laugh."

"I tried my best," he said. "There was nothing I could do."

One of them solidified in front of him. The shadows edged away to reveal light blonde hair. She was once a pretty girl, but the hate in her face disfigured her. "You abandoned me. I came back to you, but you abandoned me."

"Rose, I – I left you with him! He was me, pretty much." Suddenly, he was aware that he was lying down on some soft surface. A bed. This wasn't real, just a dream. With a great effort, he opened his eyes. He saw his apartment, a small, cheap room shrouded in thick steam. The napkin, or what was left of it, was in a pot on the stove. He did not have anything better than a pot to put it in. Well, he had done all he needed to do with it, and now he only had to compound the antidote.

He got to his feet slowly. His legs felt like they were made of sand. He had to lean on the counter for support. Already his head was reeling, threatening to plunge him back into that dark nightmare. He recognized the effects. He had seen it several times during the Time War. His own species dreaming, trapped in eternal torment. It wasn't so much a poison as it was a drug, a torture tool. He looked at the pot. Even now, in its diluted form, it was powerful enough to affect him strongly. He may have never woken up until the landlord came looking for his rent. Or until the apartment burned down.

Still, he knew how to counteract the effects somewhat. There was a simple stimulant, a Time Lord steroid, that could help him live normally with this chemical floating around. It wouldn't do much with the pure, concentrated form, but it would help him get away while there was still time. It was a simple enough recipe. He had made it before in the days of the Academy. Diluted, it helped especially with the stressful nights before big exams. He had taken the pure form before, on a dare. Perhaps it was Romana who suggested it. Anyway, he did not want to do that again. Being banned from three galaxies was enough for one day. Well, since then one had repealed its decision. However, this was a time when it was absolutely necessary. The human race would forgive him. Besides, a hyper Time Lord was better than an army of dubious men in dark sunglasses.

Many of the ingredients were available in this apartment. The others he improvised on. In several minutes it was done. He sat back down on the couch with the mug. Goodness, he was as weak as a feather! He could hardly string two thoughts together, either. A simple cup of liquid was all he had to show for his exhausting efforts. Well, let's see just what kind of effect it would have.

Almost immediately on drinking it he felt his energy return. He leaped off of the couch. "Alright, out with you!" he shouted to the pot. "Allons-y!" The contents of the pot were spilled on the ground many yards below, startling an alley cat. The steam began to creep out the window. "Ah, that's so much better! I feel like a new man!" Frowning, he stopped himself. "Well, not exactly. Now, time to make more of that stuff! The effect only lasts so long…"

-CR-

Melissa's wonderful night had drawn to a close. She and Russell were now standing outside her house. She looked at the house, and then smiled at him. Time to say goodbye. "I had a fantastic time, Russell. You're the first boyfriend I have ever had. I-I think I'm getting used to dating."

He put an arm around her shoulder. "I sure hope you are. For me it never took any getting used to."

"I'm new to this," Melissa said. "You may have had lots of practice, but I haven't. It won't stay new for long, though."

"Is that okay with you? Not staying new?"

Melissa smiled. "In some ways it's better. It'll always be new in a way. None of our dates will be exactly the same. But I'll get experienced with it, know what to do, what to feel. All I feel is… awkwardness, but that's going away."

"Just take your time. I'll be there."

"I know you will." She hesitated, and then she hugged him. "Goodbye, Russell." She walked up the driveway. Suddenly, a figure jumped out in front of her. "Miss Meagan! What are you doing out here?"

"Is Russell here?" the woman asked abruptly.

"Yeah, I think so."

The woman smiled brightly at her. "I'll talk to him for a moment. Your dad just had me over for dinner."

"You're staying awful late."

"We got to talking. Russell! Wait up!" She ran towards him, panting slightly when she reached him just as he climbed into his car. "How was Melissa tonight?"

"Wonderful," Russell said enthusiastically. "I think she's warming up to me."

"Oh, that's good, that's really good. She does have some issues. Most of her life she's been alone, all that loss, and now the Doctor…"

"The Doctor?" Russell asked. "_The_ Doctor?"

Miss Meagan nodded, startled. "You know him?"

Russell slammed his fists onto his steering wheel. "No, thank goodness, but I know all about him. He's dangerous, Miss Meagan. A deadly enemy."

"I knew it," Miss Meagan muttered.

"How does Melissa know?"

"She saw him at one of her clinical. He took her hostage. But she's being all weird with it."

"The Doctor is tricky. He's known to travel with assistants. Women, mostly. I guess he's good with the ladies. They don't last long, though. Just more lives to add to the list of those he ruined."

"Well, we mustn't let that happen to Melissa. She's such a darling. I don't want her to be taken advantage of… _ruined_."

"My dad works for an organization that's trying to track him down and do justice to him. Perhaps we can help her… and she can help us." He handed her a business card. "Feel free to schedule an appointment. I'll tell him all about you."

Miss Meagan took the card. "Thanks, Russell. I'm sure she'll be grateful, too. Are you really going to drive in the dark with those sunglasses on?"

Russell shrugged. "I'm used to it."

Miss Meagan waved as he drove off. She looked at the card in her hands. Melissa would definitely be tired after her eventful night. She would wait until morning to approach her with this news.

-CR-

"Stay calm, sir. We have surgeons at the hospital who can save you."

The patient was sweating heavily and breathing desperately. His skin was turning bluish as the EMTs rushed him into the ER.

"What do we have?" a nurse asked, walking towards them.

"Sudden, severe abdominal pain accompanied by hypotension. He's in hypovolemic shock now, blood pressure's dropping. We think he's hemorrhaging internally."

"I'll call OR stat. I've seen many patients like this. There's not much time to lose. Dr. Johnson will take a look at him, but I doubt he will want to procrastinate. Does he have a history?"

"Yes. Significant for hypertension and an abdominal aortic aneurysm."

The nurse nodded. "We have an endovascular repair surgeon here right now. I'll notify him."

Within minutes, the patient was being wheeled into the OR.

"Do we have a type and cross yet?" Dr. Johnson asked.

"It has just been completed," the accompanying nurse said. "A unit of blood is on its way, and there are several more on standby."

"Good. He's not in terminal shock yet."

Melissa was quivering with excitement. She was about to see her first operation! There were no surgeries scheduled on Saturdays, so the students usually had to wait for emergency surgeries, like this one. A dissecting abdominal aortic aneurysm could be fatal within an hour. This poor man had had a close call. She had just made it to the OR when the patient was brought in.

She could tell that he was not in good shape at her first glance. Air hunger, cyanosis, and sheer terror were signs of moderate shock. If they did not fix the problem soon, it was only a matter of time until he passed. Fortunately, a nurse was already setting up a transfusion line.

"Hello, have we met?" a familiar British voice said.

Melissa gasped. "Dr. Johnson! What are you – is this your patient?"

"Yes, well, I met him in the ER," Dr. Johnson said. "Excited?"

"Yes! It is exciting. I don't think it's that scary. I mean, I'm okay with blood and guts, otherwise I'm in the wrong profession. But I'm not fond of people dying. It looks like he has a fair chance, though."

"The surgeon has been notified," a nurse said. "Do we have the anesthetist here?"

"Just arrived," a man said, introducing himself to the patient. "Let's get him prepped stat."

"Melissa, just stick with me, okay?" Miss Carmen, the circulating nurse, said. "Things are going to be moving awful fast now."

"Right," Melissa said.

"I'm going to prepare the OR. Be sure to wear your mask when you're in there. And I'm warning you, it's freezing in there!"

Dr. Johnson smiled at her. "So, see you later?"

Melissa nodded. "Yeah, maybe." She dashed after Miss Carmen.

-CR-

In about an hour, Melissa was walking down the hallways, eyes shining. The surgery had been a remarkable success. The surgeon had reached the bulging blood vessel within minutes, and he soon plugged the leak with a special graft. The patient had remained stable throughout the operation, although still a little hypotensive. The transfused blood prevented his organs from shutting down from lack of oxygen. Upon awakening from the anesthetic, he had displayed much greater mental functions than in his confused, oxygen-deprived state. His family, a gentle, portly wife and a tall son, greeted him with tears and smiles. It had been a close shave.

She walked into the cafeteria and saw that only a few students remained with the instructor. Some had already left, having finished their lunch already. She was late because of the surgery, but it did not matter to her. She was hungry, but at least she saw it happen.

She was carrying her lunch to the table when she realized that they had an extra person at the table. She recognized Dr. Johnson's tousled brown hair. What was he doing there?

She sat down. "Hello again, Dr. Johnson."

"Hello, Melissa," he said, smiling. "I heard that the surgery went well."

"Yes, the surgeon is very optimistic about his recovery. Oh, Miss Molly, it was so exciting! Only a few minutes more and he would have had organ damage. In half an hour he would have been dead!"

"Yes, dissecting aortic aneurysms are very sudden," Mrs. Habrock said. "Many patients do not make it. Even if they get to the hospital in time, the staff isn't prepared for it. That's why it's so important for those patients with aneurysms to control their blood pressure."

"Well, _everybody_ should control their blood pressure," Melissa said.

"Yep, that would cut down on a lot of our work," Dr Johnson agreed.

"And it would free up all our rehab centers," Mrs. Habrock said. "Fewer heart attacks and strokes."

"But the problem is no one really wants to change their lifestyle," Melissa added.

"Fried food is one of those things that are hard to give up," Dr. Johnson said mischievously.

Melissa blushed as she munched on a French fry. "It's a treat. I haven't had fries for about a month."

"Okay, I'll let that one go."

"How long have you been in Texas, Dr. Johnson?" Mrs. Habrock asked.

"Oh, a week or two, I suppose."

Mrs. Habrock's eyebrows went up. "Wow, you've really hit the ground running."

"Well, they were pretty impressed by my resume, I must admit. They were desperate."

"And you filled in the gap."

"Do you have any family, Dr. Johnson?" Melissa asked. "How did they deal with the move?"

Dr. Johnson sighed sadly. "I used to have a family, but they're gone. I'm on my own now."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Melissa said quietly.

He smiled at her. "Oh, that all happened a long time ago. I've had years to get over it."

"But you never do. It's always there, that hole in your heart. Something's always missing. It does get better, though. After a time, you hardly ever think of it. But at the beginning, it's like life can't go on anymore."

"You sound like you were there yourself."

"It doesn't really apply, Dr. Johnson," she said awkwardly. A sudden movement caught her eye. "Russell? What's he doing here?"

"Boyfriend?" another student asked.

"Overprotective boyfriend, I'm beginning to think," Melissa said, getting to her feet. However, Russell had already walked into the building and was walking towards her.

"Hello, sunshine," he said brightly. "I just thought, since I was dropping by… who is this?"

Melissa looked over her shoulder. "Oh, this is Dr. Johnson. He works in the ER. He likes chatting with us sometimes."

Russell extended his hand to shake, but his smile seemed forced. "Nice to meet you, sir," he said.

"Yes, and you too," Dr. Johnson said. "That was very thoughtful of you to stop in and check on your friend."

"It's a good thing I was in the OR today," Melissa said. "You would have missed me otherwise."

"You were in the OR?" Russell asked with obvious interest.

Melissa nodded. "Emergency case. It was quite dramatic. The outcome was good, though."

Russell smiled again.

"You know, I really should be going," Dr. Johnson said. "I just wanted to mingle with you students for a while. There's nothing like young, hungry minds. It reminds me of when I was a student."

"You must have been a clever one," Melissa commented.

"No, actually. I just picked up a lot of stuff on the way. Well, hopefully I'll see you again soon. Goodbye, Melissa R Brogan. What does the R stand for?"

"Rachel," Melissa said hastily.

"Really?"

"No! Why should you know my middle name? Is that going to save anyone's life?"

"Who knows?"

Melissa laughed. "You should leave now. I'm afraid that we aren't being too professional."

"Oh, so professional means you can't be friendly?"

"No, it means… I'm not sure what it means, actually."

Dr. Johnson smiled. "I don't think I'll be kicked out of this hospital for chatting with a nursing student, but, just to be on the safe side, see you later." He waved and walked briskly to the hospital entrance.

Russell tried to keep smiling, but it was difficult, even with his conditioning. His emotional side was reacting to this strongly. That man was most certainly the Doctor. And he had been talking to the girl like she was one of his companions! That was one mark of the Doctor; he could talk to anyone anywhere at any time. Still, the toxin should have worked on him. He should have been in a coma or at least collapsed in a heap at such close range. The Time Lord was stronger than he thought. He knew that there was a treatment for the drug, but at such close range he would still have been rendered helpless. He looked at Melissa's neck. It was bare.

"You're not wearing your necklace!"

Melissa looked at him, startled. "No, it's against dress code. I mean, do you really want a patient to grab onto it and nearly strangle me?"

"I'm sorry. It's just that … you look really pretty with it on, and seeing you wearing it reminds me that you're mine."

She smiled reassuringly. "I am yours, Russell. I wear it whenever I go out, sometimes even at home. It's very special to me. I don't want to bring it here, where it might get broken. Besides, it doesn't really match the uniform."

Russell was already formulating another plan. He had to get Melissa to the Doctor while she was still wearing the necklace. That would be easy, since he was disguising himself as an emergency room physician. A subtle poison should do the trick. It would disguise itself as an electrolyte imbalance, but it would create symptoms severe enough to require an ambulance. He was prepared for its worst effects, so she would not die from it. And then the Doctor would come and he would be helpless. Russell grinned. Yes, that would work.

-CR-

The Doctor was feeling rather pleased with himself. The treatment was working. Most of the time at his apartment he felt quite normal, almost back to his old self. And being with Melissa again only affected him about half as badly. He could manage now. He could find those creepy guys with the sunglasses and put an end to their plans. He wouldn't have to worry about falling unconscious without warning, unable to defend himself against those people. And so far he hadn't had enough to make him really off-the-wall hyper.

Still, there was something that was worrying him. Melissa's boyfriend. The guy was wearing sunglasses. Well, it didn't have to mean anything. It was a bright day outside. Perhaps he didn't want to bother with taking them off. However, it was a lot dimmer inside than outside. A person would be practically blind with sunglasses on. How did he manage? Or did he manage at all? Was he one of those people? He did act oddly, throwing a fit over a simple small necklace. And the way he looked at the Doctor didn't seem to be too trustworthy. It was as if he was waiting for him, as if he knew him.

The Doctor leaned back in his chair. This may go badly for Melissa. They seemed to think he was interested in her. Of course he was, because _they_ seemed to have an interest in her. That was almost too convoluted to think about. They must think that Melissa was perfect to lure him out of hiding, the perfect bait in their trap. That was why she was heavily saturated with that chemical. She and many other people. Yes, Melissa was one of hundreds of "Doctor-traps" walking around. He was lucky enough not to meet any one of them up close and personal.

Still, Melissa was special. He could see that in her. From the time she first came into that prison cell – well, hospital room, actually – he had seen that she was different. She questioned authority if it went against what she thought was right. She saw a helpless person lying in a bed who needed comforting, not a list of rules to follow. She stood up to the consequences. Well, there was not much she could do about Dr. Smith yelling at her, but she held fast. She didn't look back. She would do great things. She didn't do things because she was told to. She did them because they were right. Well, most of the time. Of course, there must have been instances when she had behaved less than ideally. There always was.

If it had been earlier, before he had seen all of his companions snatched away, he may have taken her along. She was a smart girl, one fascinated by newness and knowledge. In fact, he saw a lot of himself in her. Well, a lot of what he was on his good days. Well, a lot of what he was once in a while. Well, a lot what he wished he could be. Sometimes he doubted. Was genocide really an option? Would Melissa have destroyed the daleks as ruthlessly as he once did? Would she have transformed people into weapons simply by having them with her?

That was another reason why he didn't want to travel with her. She was too pure. Anyone he took along with him became damaged, like he was. All those people on the Crucible, ready to die and take their worlds with them, quite possibly without their consent, without a second thought. And himself, running headlong from one adventure to the next, not looking back because he might see himself as what he was, what he had become.

The Doctor sighed. Since when had he become so brooding and self-deprecating? This regeneration seemed to be very sensitive to loss. Well, it had taken a lot to get him to this point. Rose had been the first, but he had moved on, taking on another companion afterwards. Of course, Martha only reminded him of what he had lost. And losing Donna was the final straw. He saw what he had done to them. He travelled on his own after that. And Adelaide, oh, Adelaide, that served to show him just what a monster he had become. He was no better than the creatures he defeated as they planned the destruction of another species.

_Okay, stop this, Doctor_, he told himself. _You took on many formidable opponents. A few quiet moments with yourself shouldn't be so terrible._

-CR-

Melissa stepped out of the car gingerly. She felt apprehensive. "Okay, tell me again just what we're doing here."

"I'm going to show you just what the Doctor is," Russell said ominously.

Melissa scurried along beside him. There was an urgency in his footsteps that she had never seen before. It was like they were running out of time. "Yes, but why did we have to take a _limo?_ And not just one limo but _three_ limos!"

"Safety. The Doctor's a clever creature. We need to be just as wily as he is to keep ahead of him. And safe from him."

Melissa sighed. "I sure hope this is worth it. I keep worrying that someone will see me getting out of a limo and say 'What is that girl doing in a limo? She's not dressed all fancy. In fact, she looks drab!'"

Russell laughed. "Don't worry, you look fabulous, even when you're casual. Just let us spoil you for once."

"Oh, so I haven't been spoiled before?"

They entered a tall, narrow building. Melissa stared up at it, feeling out of place. This belonged in a sci-fi spy movie, not a normal girl's life. Still, if the Doctor was real, then this place was also real. They entered the building, going through metal detectors and various other screening equipment that Melissa had never seen before. "She's with me," she heard Russell saying. "We have to tell her some things. It's about the Doctor. She's met him several times."

Russell was able to cheat the security scan with his ID card. On the other hand, Melissa had to deal with the whole thing. She was patted-down, blasted by air, and x-rayed until she was more than ready to give up and go home. At least they didn't ask her to strip or anything…

Russell lead her into a bright white classroom. It was small and semicircular, almost like the rooms at the college. It was full of people, all staring straight ahead, all bearing solemn faces, all wearing dark sunglasses. If Melissa had seen this group of men following her, she would have ducked into a corridor and waited until they all passed by. They were so intimidating. However, the most intimidating of them all was the man up front. She immediately recognized him as Dr. Smith. Her heart grew cold.

"Hello, Dad. Melissa, this is my dad," Russell said once the audience was dismissed.

Melissa gaped. "He's your dad?"

Dr. Smith smiled at her, all congeniality. "Hello, how are you? Russell's been telling me all about you."

Melissa timidly shook his hand. "Hi."

"She's really shy, so don't be too hard on her," Russell said. "She's here to hear about the Doctor."

Dr. Smith's smile faded to an expression of deep interest. "Why's that? Has my son been filling your brain with all his grand schemes of ridding the world of this pest?"

"No, Dad, I haven't. She already knows of the Doctor."

Dr. Smith openly stared at her.

"It was her dad's friend. She told me all about it. He took her hostage once."

"He took you hostage?" Dr. Smith exclaimed. "Was this at a hospital, by any chance?"

"It wasn't exactly a hospital," Melissa muttered. "Yes, it was me."

"You were that student! The one who released him!"

"Yes, I was. Please, don't be angry. I only did what was right. He really didn't need all that stuff."

"That was the only way we could keep him contained," Dr. Smith snarled.

"Why not a cell?"

"He might just escape from a cell! He's got alien technology that's vastly superior to ours."

"Still, he was terrified," Melissa said, crossing her arms.

"He was manipulating you."

"Dad, she doesn't know yet!" Russell pleaded. "She doesn't know all the details. I haven't been able to tell her yet. Once she knows, she may agree."

Dr. Smith looked at her closely. Melissa swallowed. She was terrified yet indignant. That man's cruel treatment of the Doctor was still vivid in her mind. Even if the Doctor was as bad as they said he was, surely there were better options.

"Okay, first thing, he's not from our world," Dr. Smith began.

"He's alien?" Melissa asked.

"Yes. Our universe is full of surprises. You have examined him, have you not?"

"Yeah."

"And you found that he has two hearts?"

"Yes. And a super low body temperature."

"His anatomy is not that of a human's. Neither is his physiology. In some ways he is superior to us. He's approximately 900 years old."

"Wow. That's old."

"His species undergoes a process termed 'regeneration' to preserve their longevity. You don't need to know much about that. He calls himself a Time Lord. His ship is something he calls a TARDIS. He can travel anywhere in time and space with it."

"Cool."

"We have it in our custody."

"Okay. I'd like to see Florence Nightingale, if you don't mind."

"This is not a joke, child. Do you remember that time when the planets appeared in the sky? Where those robots patrolled the streets?"

"Yes, I do remember," Melissa said. "My dad was very interested in the planets. We looked at them for a while. I do remember the robot things, too. We only saw a few of them. Mostly we hid inside."

"I see. Well, the Doctor was behind all of that. I'm sure he caused it."

"What if he was the good guy? What if he was trying to save us?"

Dr. Smith leaned close. "Miss Brogan, this man – this _creature_ – is dangerous. Just remember how many people died in those days. Everywhere he goes destruction follows. We've done the research. Anyone who travels with him is either driven mad or killed. Whenever he arrives, disaster happens. He should not be allowed to traipse across the universe like he has been doing so far."

"Dr. Smith, I think you're just scared. You don't know this Doctor. You don't know who he is. You're afraid of him."

"Miss Brogan, he's the one you should fear. Don't you remember what he did to you? He took you hostage, threatened to kill you if we did not stand down. Then he blew up the place. And you have not been able to forget him since, right?"

Melissa was silent.

"Yes, I am right. I can see it. He's taking over your mind, trying to make you one of his pretty female assistants. Your life hasn't been all that satisfying since he came into it, right? All you want now is more of the Doctor."

"Are you saying that he has some sort of hypnotic control over me?"

"We're not sure, but so far you're the only one we've seen personally who's been exposed so much to him."

"I suspect that Dr. Sam Johnson at the hospital is the Doctor, Dad," Russell piped up. "And he does hang around her a lot."

"That's just ridiculous!" Melissa protested. "I'm not under mind control!"

"Miss Brogan, he's an alien," Dr. Smith said. "We don't even know what he wants and what he's capable of. We should tread cautiously."

"Well, if we extend the hand of friendship, perhaps we –"

"You don't shake hands with someone who's holding a gun. You're an idealist, Miss Brogan, but the world's full of mistakes, and the solutions for those mistakes aren't always the best. Destroying the Doctor would be better for mankind."

"But he's a sentient being! We should—"

"Miss Brogan, you know hardly anything next to me. I'm the expert here, the adult. Listen to me. I speak from experience."

Melissa sighed. "I suppose you're right. Okay, what do you have in mind?"

-CR-

The Doctor strode through the halls. A couple of nurses who were exchanging notes smiled at him. He smiled back. Oh dear, he seemed to be getting quite popular here. That may pose some problems when it became time for him to leave.

The ER had not been that busy that night. A man came in with chest pain that turned out to be pericarditis, so he was prescribed some antibiotics and admitted into the hospital for a short stay. A little boy needed some stitches, and a teenager had a broken arm, but otherwise it had been quite quiet. Of course, none of the staff would dare to say so. There was a superstition in medicine that as soon as one mentioned the "Q" word things would quickly become chaotic. That and order Chinese food.

Suddenly, he was struck by a sudden bout of dizziness. He leaned against the wall to catch his balance. This hadn't happened in a while. For a moment the corridor in front of him swam and he forgot where he was. Then he regained his sense of balance and his orientation. He made his way to the doctor's lounge where he kept his special energy drink. He took a sip out of the metallic water bottle. He instantly felt the fatigue drain away. Now, what had happened to make him experience those symptoms again? He had felt it periodically. He assumed that it was because he was near someone who had the poison. Someone in the ER must have it, then. Well, he would have to lay low for a bit, claim to feel unwell, and take more of his makeshift treatment until the trouble had passed. Yes, that would be the best plan, except that things don't always go according to plan.

"Dr. Johnson, there's someone in the ER waiting for you," a nurse said. "It's a patient."

"Ask Dr. Killian to take care of it," the Doctor said. "I'm not feeling well at the moment."

"I'm sorry, Dr. Johnson, but the woman wants to see you specifically. She knows you personally."

The Doctor stood up. "I guess I'm well enough to do one case," he said. Now, who could it be? "What exactly happened?"

"A young woman brought in by ambulance only minutes ago with sudden onset of chest pain, light-headedness, and an irregular pulse. Twelve lead ECG confirms her rhythm as ventricular tachycardia. So far she's stable, still conscious. It's not responding well to medications, and they tried cardioversion with limited success. Lab's been notified and they're screening for potential toxicity."

By the time she was finished they had reached the corridor. The Doctor's symptoms were returning, almost as severe as they had been in that delivery room when he had met Melissa again. The poison must be in that room. However, before he could warn the nurse, she had opened the door. The effect was nearly instantaneous. The Doctor felt all his energy drain out of him, like someone had flicjed a switch. He collapsed in a heap, his senses reeling. Blurred figures spun above him and muffled voices spoke. He didn't know when, where, or who he was. Then the phantoms came. At first they were dark shadows, then he himself was plunged into darkness and they took form. All of them, gaining faces, horrible, disfigured, hateful faces. Faces that he had once knew, now so twisted by hate that he could hardly recognize them. But he did, he always did.

"How do you like travelling alone, Doctor?" a blonde woman sneered. "Are you enjoying it? Not as fun as you thought now, was it?"

"Who are you again?" he asked, his voice weak.

"You don't remember me? Oh, of course you don't remember me. All you cared about was that _thing_ living inside of me, that brand new thing that took my life and almost took yours."

"Listen, Skye, if it had all gone according to plan, I would have taken you to a safe place. I would have found out more about that thing, and maybe I could have saved you. But… things went wrong."

"Oh, of course. Things always go wrong."

"Is that your only excuse?" another woman said, stepping beside Skye. She looked a lot like a tree. "Things going wrong? I wouldn't have sacrificed myself if things might just 'go wrong'."

"Nor I," a third woman said. She had chocolate brown skin and smooth black hair. "_I_ saved you that day. _I_ saved the world. _You_ were completely helpless, completely useless. What's the use of you, I wonder? Too many people die."

"Too many people die," a man said. He was dressed in a uniform. "That's all I've seen, people dying because of you, for you. People dying because they knew you, and you had inspired them. You had inspired them to give their lives, to die for others. But is it all worth it?"

"Oh, so you would have preferred to be drowned in a toxic atmosphere so a brutal alien race can breed their clones here?" the Doctor snapped.

"I would have liked to live."

"And so would many other people! So many others! What about those who are coming after you? Shouldn't they have a peaceful, prosperous planet like you've known most of your life? That's worth dying for!"

"They wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for you. They shouldn't _need_ to do it. You're the Doctor. You fix problems, not make them worse."

"I try, I honestly do."

"But isn't death and mourning a problem? How are you going to fix that?"

"You don't belong," the Hostess said. "Your planet is gone, your race is gone, all you have is an absurd little spaceship. Oh, and your delusions of grandeur. 'Hello, I'm the Doctor, Last of the Time Lords, here to fix your problems.'"

"I know, I know!" the Doctor shouted. "I've failed you! I've failed you all!"

"Doctor!"

Oh, that phrase was so familiar…

"Doctor!"

"I've failed you all," he croaked.

"Dr. Johnson, can you hear me?"

Oh.

Okay, that was a little different.

He opened his eyes to a bright white light and a black silhouette right in front of him. He moaned. "What do you want from me?"

"Name, year, and location," the face said.

The Doctor sat straight up, moaning at the light-headedness. "That's an unusual thing to ask in a… oh, hello, I'm not where I thought I was."

"You collapsed in the hallway," the nurse said. "We brought you in here so no patients would freak out. The patients are the sick ones, not the doctors. Anyway, we've been checking on you, but we can't find any reason for your sudden loss of consciousness."

He laid back down on the bed. "How long was I out for?"

"Fifteen minutes."

"Fifteen minutes!" he shouted, leaping straight off the bed and staggering as he hit the floor. "What about – what about the patient I was about to see?"

"She was discharged. A simple electrolyte imbalance. Hypokalemia. Must have eaten a funky diet or something."

"Yes, that explains the V tach," the Doctor said. "What was her name?"

"Melissa Brogan. Her boyfriend was with her. He was the one who asked for you."

The Doctor stared at her. Uh oh, this was not good. If Russell was asking for him, then now he knew that he was sensitive to whatever he gave to Melissa. Russell now knew that he was the Doctor. Oh dear, this meant trouble.

"Are you all right, Dr. Johnson? You look a little upset."

"Oh, it's just… I've met Miss Brogan a few times during her clinicals here. She's almost a friend of mine. It was quite a shock, that's all."

"Okay. Are you feeling okay enough to go ahead and work?"

The Doctor nodded. "I'll be fine." He was already feeling quite better. All he needed was another sip of his restorative, then he'd be right as rain. "Come on. Allons-y!"

"And another thing, Dr. Johnson," the nurse said, leaning out of the doorway. "We've all failed somebody. I don't know how many patients I've lost. I used to question myself all the time, wondering if I could have saved them if I had done something differently. What's done is done. Don't blame yourself."

The Doctor smiled. "Thanks for that advice." He waved and then moved on down the hallway.

-CR-

"What did you do again?" Melissa demanded.

"It wasn't poison," Russell defended. "It was… a drug. I had to get you sick enough to go to the ER, but you wouldn't have died."

"Russell, I'm learning this stuff! Hypokalemia is a deadly condition! V tach can be fatal! I could have gone into cardiac arrest! They even shocked me!"

Russell sighed. "Melissa, we had to do it. We had to find out if he was the Doctor. And he is! So, mission accomplished, you won't have to do anything like that again."

"You poisoned me," Melissa stated.

"I saved the world!"

"You slipped a chemical into my drink that may have killed me. And I knew nothing about it. That's poisoning. That's murder."

"I couldn't have told you! You never would have consented!"

"I would have if you were reasonable! You say that the Doctor is dangerous and disregards human life. Well, what does that make you, if you would have gladly killed me to have him in your clutches? You're as bad as he is."

Russell bowed his head. "I know, Melissa, I'm sorry. I guess I was just trying to make myself not feel as bad about it. I didn't want to do it. It was Dad's idea. It was something we had thrown around before I even knew you. It—I—We never used you. You're special. You're my girl."

"No," Melissa said, pulling away. "I'm not your girl. Not until you get the Doctor. Or get your head on straight. I want to date a man, not an obsession."

"I know. That's why we get this over with tonight. You know what to do."

Melissa looked around. It was dark, and the only light came from the lamp nearby. She shivered. She had heard all the stories about the greenbelt at night, about all the creeps and psychos who lurked in the shadows. "Are you sure he'll be here?"

"Yep. He wants you, Melissa. He's going to come for you tonight, and he knows that you'll be here. Don't worry, I won't let him get you. He won't even touch you."

Melissa nodded. "It-It's not the Doctor I'm really worried about."

"Ha, well, I have a gun for the rest of the other people."

"So, this is it? The final round?"

"Yep. Oh, I'll need your necklace."

Melissa took it off. "Keep it safe," she said.

"I will," he said, taking it in his hand. "Don't worry. I'll keep you safe. You just keep him talking. He should be coming right along pretty soon."

Melissa watched him as he disappeared into the bushes. As always, he was wearing his dark sunglasses. "Russell, why did everyone at your dad's research place wear sunglasses?"

"It's a defect."

"The same defect? Everyone has the same defect?"

"I don't know, but we think it's some kind of toxin. Maybe it's from the Doctor's space ship!"

"Okay," Melissa said quietly. Now for the wait.

-CR-

The Doctor was strolling along casually, comfortable in the night silence. He wore his familiar brown coat, and a slight breeze caught it at the corners. He was going to pay Melissa a visit. He could detect the drug from a distance with a small handheld device he had just made that afternoon. It helped narrow down her location. Well, he knew where she lived, so he knew her basic whereabouts. He was surprised when he saw that she was apparently on the greenbelt. He saw a figure in the distance and walked towards it. Now was the time all questions were answered. He had to know who Russell was. She had to know who he was so she could trust him and help him. It was reckless of him, he knew, but it was his best chance at nailing that strange Russell person.

"Hello, Melissa R Brogan," he said when he had come near enough. He tried to sound as friendly as possible. Goodness, it must be terrifying to be approached by some stranger on the greenbelt at night. "Haven't seen you for a while."

She jumped. "Doctor, is that you?"

He came into the light so she could see his face. He smiled. "Yep. I understand that that was you in that room in the ER today."

Her face clouded. "Yeah."

"What happened?"

"He poisoned me," she said bitterly.

"What do you mean he poisoned you? Who's he?"

"Russell. My boyfriend." Then it all came spilling out. "It was all part of a plan to catch you. He thinks you're evil! You're not evil, are you?"

"No, I don't suppose I am. Very few things are."

"Then what are you?"

"I try to be good, I try to save people, fix planets, but it doesn't always work out."

"So Russell only knows those times when it doesn't work out," she mused.

"Who is this boyfriend of yours?"

"Russell Smith. Dr. Smith's his dad. They all wear sunglasses. Every one of them in his research center."

"Wow, you seem to have gotten right into the center of this whole problem."

"I suppose I have," she said regretfully. "Doctor, he's using me as bait."

"What?"

"He wants me to stand here and talk to you while he does something to catch you."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I'm not sure what to think," she said. "Russell's my boyfriend. I've never had a boyfriend. But… he's with Dr. Smith, and Dr. Smith's the one who tied you up."

He grabbed her hand and started to walk at a brisk pace. "No no no, that doesn't matter now. What does matter is that we get out of here. Allons-y, let's get running. I do love running. I seem to do a lot of it. Then we can find my ship. Would you like to help me?" Suddenly, the world began to spin. "Oh no," he moaned.

"Doctor, what is it?"

"Melissa!" Russell's distant voice shouted. "Stay back!"

"Russell! Whatever you're doing, please stop!"

The Doctor resumed walking. "Come on, I can still make it. Hurry!"

"Stop this instant, creature!" Russell hollered.

The Doctor stopped, but not because he was told to. His legs trembled, and then they gave way. "Melissa, get away!"

Melissa glanced up helplessly at Russell's approaching form. "What are you doing?"

"It's a drug. It weakens me." The Doctor shut his eyes tight. Everything was a blur; time, vision, memory, everything. Even with his eyes closed, he could still feel his body whirling about as if it were in a vortex.

"Russell, stop it!"

"Melissa," the Doctor said. It took him a great deal of effort to speak. "He's not…Russell. He's… something else. Run."

Russell had now reached them. He held his hands behind his back. "Melissa, I told you, he's dangerous."

"Russell, you might be wrong. Please, let's just listen to him!"

"Melissa, why would he tell the truth?"

The Doctor had managed to raise himself up off the ground slightly. He felt around for a firm, solid surface to lean against. Ah, a tree trunk, perfect. He rested against it, only barely conscious. "So, why don't you just tell us who you are? After all, you're going to finish me off or something, aren't you?"

Russell grinned evilly. "That's for later. I'm just the delivery boy. No, I think you'll get the whole explanation before the final deed is done." He held out his hands, the necklace dangling from one of his fingers.

The Doctor gasped. At the sight of that thing he lost control of his body. He became too weak to do anything. His head whirled around and he lost all sense of… anything really. All his memories were gone. His awareness of himself was gone. He no longer knew if he had a body. He could no longer feel it. His awareness of time and all his knowledge was gone. Everything was gone. All he was aware of was that someone was advancing towards him with a weapon in his hand, and everything in his being rebelled against that thing drawing close to him. Then, when it was near enough that he could actually see what it was, his vision began to go black. Voices, those same old voices, began to torment him again. The faces came along, too. He was nearly in that awful dream world again. However, he still saw that man advancing towards him. He felt his being drift away, sucked out as if through a straw. Then he knew nothing except for torment and regret.

-CR-

Melissa watched, horrified, as Russell put the necklace on the Doctor's neck. As he neared him, the Doctor's body sagged and his eyes rolled back. Then he became absolutely lifeless. "What is that thing?"

"It's your necklace," Russell said. "I did it to protect you. He wouldn't have been able to come near you without this happening."

"No, you weren't trying to protect me," she said. "You were trying to capture him! That's all you care about!"

"Melissa, many things need to be explained. Come with me." He put an arm around her shoulder, but she shrugged it off. Still, she followed him out of the forest as several other men materialized out of the darkness to carry off the Doctor's inert form.

A/N : Oh no, they got the Doctor! What's going to happen now? Stay tuned for next week!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N Okay, next chapter. Thanks for the reviews! I'm working as a sitter on the night shift, so I've been writing this all night. If it doesn't make sense in some places, that's because I was nodding off.

Chapter Five:

Dr. Smith watched from an upstairs window as the armored truck came to a stop right outside the building. The back opened and a stretcher came out. The inert form resting on it was firmly tied down, he noted with a smile. He observed gleefully as the men wheeled him through the gigantic iron-clad doors. The Doctor was done. There was no way out for him now.

A second vehicle pulled up. It was a limo. He watched with distaste as his son stepped out with that girl. That girl had caused him problems. She was one of those useless tender-hearted idealists who served no real purpose for them. She was one of those people who took pride in being different. Well, different meant chaos. They wouldn't have had such success if they were all different. Thank goodness their masters had made them all the same.

He turned to the computer that took up the whole wall behind him. "Russell has brought someone else with him. The girl, that little pet of the Doctor's. The one he seemed so attached to. Did you authorize this?"

"THE GIRL WILL BE OF USE! WE SHALL BREAK HER! WE SHALL USE HER TO EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR, AND SHE SHALL BE AN EXAMPLE TO ALL EARTH OF THE POWER OF THEIR SUPREME MASTERS! SHE SHALL ELIMINATE THE DOCTOR FOR ALL ETERNITY!"

"And how shall you go about doing that?" Dr. Smith asked, taking a sip of ice-cold water.

"SHE SHALL BE SUBJUGATED LIKE ALL THE OTHER WORKERS HERE! SHE SHALL BE MADE INTO ONE OF YOUR SOLDIERS! BUT WE SHALL KEEP HER THOUGHTS INTACT SO SHE MAY EXPERIENCE EVERY MOMENT OF HER HORRIBLE DEED! HER VERY BEING WILL REBEL AGAINST EXTERMINATING THE DOCTOR, BUT SHE WILL HAVE NO POWER OVER HER BODY!"

"An excellent plan, master," Dr. Smith said. "How long until it's carried out?"

"THE GIRL SHALL BE CONDITIONED IMMEDIATELY! THE DOCTOR SHALL BE EXTERMINATED BEFORE DAWN!"

"Wonderful."

-CR-

Melissa didn't know what to think. Russell was acting like a big hero, but all she could think of was how helpless the Doctor looked when he was caught. She was angry with her boyfriend, worried about the Doctor, and so confused about the whole thing. She also felt so helpless. What could she do?

"Melissa, you're safe now," Russell said to her. "You don't need to worry about the Doctor anymore."

"I'm not worried about him," she said indignantly. "I'm worried _for_ him." She crossed her arms. "I need answers. And you're not giving me any!"

Russell sighed. "Yes, and I'm sorry. Come on, follow me. We need to do something before I can explain."

"Where are we going?" Melissa asked, following him.

"We need to give you a little checkup. We don't know what the Doctor's done to you. After that I'll explain everything."

Melissa was lead to a dark room with many computer screens along the walls. A short, pudgy man with brown hair was staring at them, looking at the irregular spikes and waves that were on the screens. He looked quite young, as if he had only been out of school for a short time and was just now starting his career. He jumped when Russell entered and nodded nervously. Melissa noticed that he wasn't wearing dark sunglasses. Well, that was a change.

"We need an EEG on this girl," Russell said. "She might be suffering some electrochemical malfunction in the brain."

"Oh, sure," the man mumbled. "You people do need a lot of those. Now just sit down there, sweetie."

Melissa laid down on the small bed and rested her head back. What were they doing? An EEG – they wanted to look at her brainwaves. What for? Russell had said some nonsense about the Doctor using mind control. Well, she wasn't under mind control. She was pretty sure of that. If she was under mind control, then she wouldn't be able to think on her own. She would never be able to question her actions. She would never even consider being under mind control. She wouldn't _think_. Well, at least that's how she thought it worked. It all boiled down to her not trusting Russell. He was up to something, and she had to be prepared.

The technician rubbed the paste into her scalp. "Don't worry about this, darling. It'll come out when you shower."

"I know. I read about this kind of stuff for fun."

His smile widened. "You do? A kindred spirit, Mr. Smith! Ha! And you were skeptical." Within minutes the electrodes were attached to her scalp and he was watching her brain's activity on a monitor. "Hmmm, looks pretty normal to me, Mr. Smith."

"Well, better safe than sorry," Russell said. "Oh, she'll be needing some Valium."

The technician stood up and frowned. "Valium? Whatever for?"

"To help her rest. She's been through a lot. Haven't you, Melissa?"

"No!" Melissa protested. "Valium's too short-acting to put me to sleep. Phenobarbital would work better. At first, that is."

"We don't have Phenobarbital," Russell said stiffly.

"Pretty stressed, isn't he?" Melissa whispered to the technician.

"Oh, very," the technician agreed.

"I'd say he needs that Valium more than I do." She raised her eyebrows meaningfully.

"Missy, I'm here to follow orders, not make my own."

"But he's not a doctor. He isn't even a medical professional! Why should you take orders from him?"

"It comes from his father."

"I don't remember Dr. Smith seeing me at all since I've arrived. Why's that, I wonder? Besides, how can he know how I am without even seeing me?"

"Miss, I –"

"I'm in nursing school, and I know you don't just go along with what the doctor says. It could be fatal."

"You have a point there, but Dr. Smith will have my guts if I don't follow his orders. Believe me, I know."

"Well, I suppose you're right," Melissa sighed. "But don't you think there's something funny about Russell? I mean, just look at him! Why is he wearing those sunglasses all the time? He says it's a defect, but... I don't know…"

The technician straightened up. "Mr. Smith, we have a bit of a problem."

"What is it?" Russell asked grumpily, coming into the room.

Melissa held her breath. Was he going to tell Russell what she had said? That would get her into big trouble.

"Look at this," the technician said, pointing to some invisible blemish on her leg. "Is this normal?"

Russell leaned over. "I don't see what you're talking about."

"Well, it's kind of hard to see. Why don't you take your sunglasses off?"

"I can see very well with them on."

"You can see better without them."

"I must wear them," Russell snarled.

"Why?"

"Because I have a defect."

"What kind of defect? Let us see it, please. Being as we're both health professionals, we may know if there's any kind of treatment for it."

"No! Just…sedate the girl!"

"Why should I?"

"Because I said so!"

"I need a good reason!"

None of the men saw Melissa stand up. She reached over to Russell's head and snatched the sunglasses off. Both she and the technician gasped. Russell's eyes were red, and his irises were big black blotches. They did not focus on anything. The technician recovered first. With one fluid motion, he seized Russell's right arm and jabbed the syringe right into the vein. Russell began to shake as the medication entered his bloodstream. He collapsed and the technician gently lowered him to the ground.

"Well, now what do we do?" the technician asked.

"That was a really good move," Melissa said. "Well, we have to find out just what's going on with him."

"Yes. The eyes – that kind of freaked me out. Maybe we should get a better look at them."

"Have you got a penlight?"

"Yes, here it is," he said, digging in his pockets.

Melissa opened one of Russell's eyes and gazed intently at it. "They aren't actually red, just bloodshot. And the pupils are massively dilated."

"Yes, they are," the technician said, leaning in to take a look. "And when he was conscious, they weren't really focused on anything. He didn't track any movement. It must be some kind of neurological abnormality."

"Look at his eyes. He's barely got any corneal reflex! They must be as dry as a desert."

"Ouch. Sounds unpleasant."

"Do you have any eyedrops around here? Maybe we can moisten them, make him more comfortable when he comes around."

"_If_ he comes around. He's a psycho, remember?"

Melissa looked at him intently. "I'm wondering…what if that wasn't him? Maybe he's under some sort of neurological control…not very good control, that is. I mean, they've hired you, and how many places like this have use for EEG technicians? It's got to be something we can find on an EEG. Shall we take a look?"

"Yes, just let me get those electrodes out of your hair."

Melissa touched her thick hair. "Yeah, good luck with that."

-CR-

Dr. Smith was jubilant. He stood on the observatory deck, above the room the Doctor was in. The Doctor's prison. Several people in white milled around him. His chest was stripped and covered with wires. He had a mask on his face. Dr. Smith smiled. The Doctor was so weak he could not even breathe for himself. Of course, the reason for his weakness was the necklace, which rested on his chest. As soon as they removed it, the Doctor would regain consciousness and become once again a formidable opponent. Now, Dr. Smith almost howled with laughter as he thought of such terms as "the Oncoming Storm." The man responsible for the downfall of whole civilizations was now lying on a bed, completely and utterly helpless. Dr. Smith's mind was not allowed the free practice of emotion, but this was a special occasion. Even his master was gloating.

"YOU HAVE DONE WELL. THE DOCTOR HAS FINALLY BEEN CONTAINED. NO OTHER RACE HAS BEEN ABLE TO SUBDUE THE DOCTOR LIKE THE DALEKS HAVE."

"Hey, we played our part."

"BUT ONLY UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE DALEKS! YOU ARE INFERIOR."

"Yes, master, but I am pleased to be of use to you all the same."

"YOU WILL BE REWARDED. YOU WILL BE SPARED EXTERMINATION LIKE THE REST OF YOUR RACE. YOU SHALL BE A SERVANT TO THE DALEKS."

Dr. Smith's lips curled in pleasure. "I am honored." However, one tiny part of his mind rebelled against the thought of being a servant to such repulsive, evil creatures. It was a tiny, atrophied part which held no weight against the conditioning of the Daleks.

"WHEN WILL THE GIRL COME?

"In time, master. It's a very delicate operation. If done incorrectly, she could lose all her faculties and become a vegetable."

"TIME IS VALUABLE. THE MORE TIME THE DOCTOR IS LEFT ALIVE, THE BIGGER CHANCE HE WILL ESCAPE."

Dr. Smith laughed. "You're out of your mind! There's no way he can escape this!"

"THE DOCTOR IS KNOWN FOR ACCOMPLISHING THE IMPOSSIBLE. AND SO ARE THE DALEKS! THE ONLY RACE THAT COULD EVER RID THE UNIVERSE OF THE DOCTOR!"

"My son will bring her down when she's ready. It won't be long. It will be finished by noon dawn."

"THAT TIMING IS ACCEPTABLE. IF THERE ARE ANY DELAYS, YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED."

"Yes, we will proceed with expediency and caution."

"GOOD. I SHALL REPORT TO THE UPPER DECK ON YOUR PROGRESS. THE DALEKS WILL BE VICTORIOUS!" A metal figure emerged from the shadows. It glided towards an elevator. Three objects protruded from its armored shell. One looked like a plunger, the other like an egg beater, and the last was a great big eye stalk that glowed blue. Its head swiveled to the side, and it disappeared down a hallway.

Dr. Smith looked out the window. "Soon, master, soon."

-CR-

"I've seen it plenty of times here, but I've never noticed it until now."

Melissa stared at the screen. She had not seen many EEG's, but she could tell that this one was different. Unlike the usual EEG, Russell's brainwaves actually followed a clear pattern. It wasn't noticeable at first, but with time one could easily pick it out. Every three seconds there would be an identical cluster of spikes. "It's almost like a pacemaker."

"I've never heard of _brain_ pacemakers. Well, there is the vagal nerve stimulator, but that's not a _pacemaker_. It looks like something is resetting his brain activity at intervals."

"It's mind control."

The technician frowned at Russell's inert figure. "Pretty sloppy mind control. They've neglected all the occulomotor functions!"

"Well, now that we know what it is, what are we going to do?"

The technician sighed. "I don't know. If it was his heart we could defibrillate it."

"But we can! ECT!"

The technician began to smile. "Ah, that is an idea! Perhaps by exposing his brain to excessive stimulation we can cause a cascade of electrical activity that fries the extraneous circuit!"

"That's what I thought."

"But we don't have all the equipment. I mean, to do electroconvulsive therapy you need to anesthetize and paralyze the patient and have basic life support ready. We don't have all of that."

"I suppose we should just do it the brutal old-fashioned way."

"Yes. I'm afraid that it's necessary." He ran a hand through his hair. "Let me get set up. The electrodes need to be prepared." It took him a few minutes. "Okay, now we're ready. Melissa, stand beside him, but don't touch the table. Be ready to resuscitate him if necessary."

Melissa followed his directions. She looked at Russell's body. She really did like him. However, because he was under mind control, it was quite possible that he didn't like her. She didn't want that to happen. He was the only one who ever dated her, ever truly loved her it seemed. But that was all a lie. He wasn't the real Russell.

"Okay, I'm ready to shock. Are you clear?"

"I'm clear!" Melissa said, imitating the videos she saw in class about codes and CPR and defibrillation.

"Okay, and…here we go."

Russell did not convulse violently. He did not thrash around and foam at the mouth. Instead, he arched his back slightly, causing himself to rise above the table somewhat. Melissa could see a noticeable tremor in his hands and feet. Well, that was a little more severe than what they did in mental health nowadays, but it was nowhere near the traumatic scene from "Cuckoo's Nest". She had seen both examples in class. An onlooker would not recognize the patient undergoing modern ECT as having a seizure.

"Did it work?" she asked once his tone had relaxed and she assessed his breathing.

The technician stared at the screens. "I'm not sure, but it's looking okay so far."

"So, now we wait."

It was about seven minutes before Russell began to regain consciousness. He moaned and rubbed his eyes. "Agh, my eyes! They feel like sandpaper!"

"You probably haven't blinked at all for several months," Melissa commented.

He looked at her, and for the first time ever she saw that his eyes were blue. "Who are you?"

"Melissa Brogan. I'm your…well, I _was_ your girlfriend. You were under mind control."

Russell gaped. "_Girlfriend?_ But…Clarice!" He pulled out his phone. "She probably hates me by now!"

Melissa felt her heart break. Russell already had someone. However, she tried to ignore her sense of loss. It was never really real in the first place.

"Now what do we do?" the technician asked, stepping into the room.

Melissa tore her gaze away from Russell, who was frantically dialing a number on his cell phone. "We get the Doctor. We must rescue him. It—It's all my fault that he was taken here in the first place."

"You can't blame yourself. These are tricky people."

"Let's get going."

"But I need to –" Russell protested.

"Now!"

-CR-

The Doctor was in torment. The phantoms would not leave him. He tried to be strong, but they kept coming, and he couldn't help but agree with them.

"You could end all of this, you know. Right here, right now. We can help you. Simply say the word, and you're done."

"You would do that? You'd let me go?"

"Yes. Just give up. You're worthless."

He shook his head at the disembodied voice, although he was unsure of how exactly one shook his or her head at a voice with no form. "I can't. The universe needs me."

"Ha! You? The universe needs you?"

"The universe would be a better place without you," a new voice said.

The Doctor turned around and saw Melissa standing behind him. "Melissa? What are you doing here?"

She was dressed in her uniform, looking very much like she did the time they first met. "I'm voicing my opinion. You're worthless."

"You saved my life. How can you say I'm worthless if you were the one who got me out of that place?"

"I didn't know. I was doing my duty as a nursing student. I had no idea that you would do that. If I did, then I would have never have released you. Just how incompetent are you? You were held prisoner in a nursing home. What kind of hero would let that happen to him?"

"I couldn't escape. They tied me down and everything!"

"What's that to a hero? Come on, you're pointless and you know it. The universe would be better off without you."

"So that's why you betrayed me? To get rid of me?"

"If I didn't betray you I'd betray the world. I saved the universe. A creature like you has no place in it."

"But I've saved the universe so many times!"

"At what cost? People died. Is that right? Is that just? Innocent people perished and suffered. You should have been able to prevent that, but you weren't. You're no hero."

"I know that, but I try."

"Then stop trying. You can never do it."

Suddenly, the shadows began to fade. "No! What are you doing? Please, no more tricks! You're right! You're right!" For a moment he was absolutely terrified of what they were doing to him, how they were going to torture him now. This was reality. The phantoms were real. All they said was true. He was stuck with them forever. And now they were playing with him.

The phantoms became wisps of smoke against his eyelids. Suddenly, he was aware that he was not in that dreamworld. He was lying on some sort of table, shirtless. He was so weak. All he could do was lie there and hope that they didn't know he was conscious. It wouldn't go well for him if they knew. What were they here for? Well, whatever they had kidnapped him for. His best guess went along the lines of murder.

"Is he all right?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

What? Concern? Now, why would his captors express any concern over him? They wanted him dead.

"He'd better be," another voice said. It belonged to the creepy boyfriend. "We've got to hurry. I must find my dad."

Well, that was more like it. They probably just didn't want to use a lot of energy in transporting him.

"I don't know," a very familiar voice said. He could hear it right in front of him. "He should be responding. Doctor! Doctor, are you okay?"

Melissa. Melissa was here. Then this must be a rescue party. He slowly pried his eyes open. The room was blurred, but her face soon came into focus. "Melissa R Brogan, aren't I glad to see you. You look so beautiful compared to what I've been seeing for the last while. How long have I been out for?"

Melissa frowned. "I don't know. Russell?"

"How should I know?" the boy grumbled. "I've been a zombie for the past several months."

"I think about two hours," the newcomer said.

"Thanks, um…sorry, I didn't catch your name," Melissa said.

"Max."

"Okay, Max. Doctor, how're you feeling?"

The Doctor could hardly speak for a moment. All that pain and torture overwhelmed him. "Terrible," was all he said.

"Can you move at all?"

"I doubt it." He lifted his head and let it fall. "Yep, that's about all I can do."

"Do you have anything to help him, Max?"

"No," Max said. "All they ever needed here was Valium and anesthetics. They never even use Tylenol!"

"I've got a granola bar," Russell offered.

"That'll do for now," the Doctor said. "Just…let me rest for a bit."

"Doctor, we have to get moving soon," Melissa said. "They won't be gone for long."

"Who? Oh, yeah, the guards. There must have been guards. How did you get rid of them?"

"Russell sent them on a very important mission," Melissa said.

"Yeah, they fell for it hook, line, and sinker," Russell said with a laugh. He obviously was quite pleased with himself.

"Okay, we need to find your stuff. Any ideas, Russell?"

"Oh, just look around. I really don't know much about this place."

The Doctor felt his strength gradually return. The weakness faded slowly, like the pains in one's feet after a long walk. His mind and vision became clearer. Still, he felt unusually emotional. All that time spent with the phantoms from his past had taxed him. He never, ever wanted to experience that again. When they came back with his shirt, he was still very weak. Melissa had to help him put it on. His fingers were too clumsy to even find a buttonhole.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor said. "Usually I'm not this helpless." In fact, he couldn't remember a time when he was this dependent on someone.

"That's all right," Melissa said. "Many of my patients couldn't lift a finger to help. It comes with being a nurse."

"We've got to get moving," Max said, looking concerned. "They'll have figured us out by now."

"Doctor, are you ready to walk?"

The Doctor grimaced. "There's no way I can do that. Our best chance is finding somewhere to hide."

"No," Max said. "I know where they keep the wheelchairs. I'll be back in a sec."

The Doctor sighed and let himself lie down again. "You guys came just in time. I don't think I would've held out."

"What?" Russell said. "It was just a coma."

Melissa glared at him. She could see from the pain in the Doctor's face that it was much more than simply being unconscious. "What is it, Doctor? What happened to you?"

"The past revisited me," the Doctor said heavily. "But it was all twisted. They all hated me. They wanted me to die."

"That must have been dreadful," Melissa said. It was heartfelt. She could feel just how awful the Doctor's experience was. She timidly stroked his hair.

The Doctor stared at her. "You came for me. You _rescued _me."

"Yes, I did."

"But you were the one who betrayed me. Why? Why did you come?"

Melissa blinked the tears away. "I'm sorry. I really didn't know. I was so confused I couldn't even think, and I was shocked to find that my own boyfriend had poisoned me. I was frozen. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't stop them. I'm sorry."

"No, don't apologize. They shouldn't have put you in that position."

"Yes, but I should have believed in you and told you right when I saw you."

"No, Melissa. You don't know anything about me. How could you believe in me?"

Melissa smiled. "Sometimes you don't have to know. Sometimes you can just tell from looking at someone that they are a good person. Dr. Smith wasn't a good person. I could see that from the way he treated others."

"Okay, here's your ride, Doctor," Max said, suddenly arriving.

"Park it right beside the table," the Doctor said. "I should be able to get into it from there."

"Not without help, Doctor," Melissa said, as if reminding him.

"Oh, let's just see how I feel first." He tried to get into a sitting position, but he could barely get his shoulders off the table. "A little help?" Max offered his arms, and he grabbed them and hauled himself to a sitting position. However, his grasp was so weak that Max had to grip onto his arms. But he could sit on his own, he soon found. He did not need any support. He swayed noticeably, though. Now that he was erect, he noticed how dizzy he was. The room spun in a slow circle. "Okay, yes, I do need help getting into the chair."

Max stepped forward. He gripped the Doctor under his arms, supporting him as the Doctor tried to position himself on the wheelchair. His legs were so weak that he could barely lift them. When he was settled comfortably in the chair and heading down the hall, he pulled out Russell's granola bar. He was strong enough now to eat it.

"What do we do now, Doctor?" Max asked.

"We stop them!" Russell said. "Call in the army, the police. We've got to finish them!"

"No one's getting killed if I can help it!" the Doctor said firmly. "Those are innocent people up there. I can tell that from looking at you. You're not wearing sunglasses anymore."

"No, he was under mind control," Melissa said. "As a side effect he couldn't blink and his eyes were dilated. That' why he needed sunglasses. That's also why his eyes are still a little pink."

Russell rubbed at his eyes. "They hurt! Do you have any more of those drops?"

"Not now," Max said. "Let's get out of here first."

"Russell, you like your dad, don't you?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, yeah, but I could live without him," Russell said. "I mean, he did die for his country."

Melissa turned on him. "You don't know anything about people dying, do you?"

"Well, I had a pet hamster. He died when I was seven."

Melissa rolled her eyes. "You really have no idea."

"So, what are we doing?" Max asked. "Do you have a plan, Doctor?"

"Yes, but plans come in stages," the Doctor said. "My plan now is to find out just who is behind this all and then make another plan on how to stop them."

Melissa shrugged. "Sounds manageable."

The Doctor was beginning to feel a lot better. The dizziness was almost gone, and his time sense had returned. He was still weak and shaky, but he could walk if he had to. Running? Well, he didn't want to find out just yet. The granola bar did seem to help.

They soon reached some sort of computer. It was a large screen on a wall that showed a sort of desktop. However, there was something very unusual about this computer.

"There's no keyboard!" Max commented. "It's a computer, but there's no way of controlling it. There's just this thing."

The Doctor wheeled himself nearer. He stared at the hole in the wall and gasped. "What? It can't be! They've never done something like this before! Oh, this is bad, very bad."

"What? What is it, Doctor?"

"Russell, did you ever meet your masters?"

"I…think I did," Russell said. "But I don't remember. It feels like a dream and I just woke up. I remember bits and pieces, but mostly I've forgotten it all."

The Doctor frowned at the computer. "They're the Daleks, a ferocious alien race whose only intent is to destroy every living creature that's different than them. They are nearly unstoppable. This means trouble."

"The Daleks?" Melissa said. "Weren't they the ones that came that time with the planets in the sky?"

"Yes," the Doctor sighed. "So, you know what they're capable of."

Melissa nodded.

"But this is very unusual for them! I mean, why so discrete? Why are they using covert tactics? They're usually pretty open with what they're planning on. Exterminate! Exterminate! You know."

"They want you, Doctor," Melissa said. "Have you ever stopped them before?"

"Oh, dozens of times."

"Then they want you out of the way."

"Well, let's be sure of that," the Doctor said, producing his sonic screwdriver. "And we also want to know just exactly they want to do _after_ I'm out of the way. They won't just let you live happily on your planet, spinning around the sun in peace. No, they'll destroy you, too. So, let's find out exactly where they are." He pointed his sonic screwdriver at the computer and many windows flashed rapidly across the screen. The others stared at the screen, hopelessly trying to read the information that zipped by too rapidly for their eyes and was so technical that they couldn't understand any of it. However, the Doctor was adept at this. "Molto bene! Look at what I found!" Of course, no one exactly saw what exactly it was that he had found. "Okay, up to the top. We've got a meeting to attend." With no further explanation he leaped out of the wheelchair and walked across the hall.

"How are you feeling now?" Melissa asked, running after him.

"A lot better. What did you do to that necklace, by the way?"

"I still have it. It's been…put away." She glanced over her shoulder. "Those were the best times I had ever had. I want to keep it as a reminder."

The Doctor glanced back at Russell. "You really do like him, don't you?"

Melissa sighed. "I grew to love him. It'll be hard giving that up. Even if it never was really real."

-CR-

"What do you mean he told you to see me?" Dr. Smith bellowed. "He's my son! You only take orders from me!"

His audience looked at each other, hoping that one of them would have the nerve to speak up and fix things.

"Now thanks to you the Doctor is gone!" He stabbed his finger at a TV screen. A security camera was looking down on an empty table. The facemask and heart monitor leads could be seen. "Go find him! And find my son and that girl! I need them! Oh, and that silly technician. He's obviously behind this, too. Now, go!"

His miniature army dispersed.

-CR-

"Now, you stay here," the Doctor said. "Russell, you come with me. If they find you, you can probably get away. Not so with you, Melissa. You're staying. Just look out for people."

"Doctor, are you sure?" Melissa asked.

"I'm not sure of anything right now. Except that they're up to no good and must be stopped. Now, allons-y!"

Melissa watched them walk through the doorway. She crouched in the corner, feeling helpless. Was this all she could do? Watch as they ran headlong into danger? Well, she was pretty useless, then. It was a large room that they were entering, one full of screens and windows that looked into other rooms. She saw the Doctor grin and point at the pipes coming from the ceiling. Somehow he got up there and was walking along them. She could see no purpose in him doing that. Weren't the answers supposed to be on the screens?

She huddled in the narrow hallway. She did not hear the footsteps approaching. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder and wrenched her to her feet. She stared into the irate face of Dr. Smith. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.

"We're putting a stop to your plans!" Melissa said hotly. "The Doctor's free now. He's going to stop you and your Dalek masters."

"I really don't see how."

"He's the Doctor. He's ruined their plans hundreds of times."

"Yes, but he didn't have useless, rejected girls hanging around, did he?"

"Well, he doesn't really need me," Melissa said quietly. "I'm not doing anything right now."

"You're right. And even when you're doing nothing you can still ruin everything for him. He shouldn't have let you tag along. He should have just made you go home."

Melissa tried to lift her chin. "I saved his life. Twice!"

"Yes, but you also betrayed him. And the only use he could find for you was as a hostage."

"He apologized for that. He was forced into it."

"That was all just to make you feel better. He doesn't really care about you. I mean, who does?"

"My dad," Melissa answered.

"Your dad, well, he hasn't exactly been around much lately, hasn't he?" Dr. Smith taunted. "All that he's interested in is Miss Meagan. Oh, you should really be more like her. I mean, if that's what gets you noticed."

Melissa looked at the floor.

"But you can't, can you? You're handicapped in that way. You simply cannot be normal. You can't fit in. You can't be loved."

"My mom loved me."

"Your mom's gone. Do you have any friends? Any friends at all?"

"Of course I do!"

"Church friends! You see them once a week! That's all! They don't even call to say hi during the week!"

Melissa turned away.

"Oh, you know I'm telling the truth. Nobody cares about you, so why should the Doctor? Why are you staying here? You're caught, you're finished. He doesn't really need you. Why don't you just leave? You'll be doing them a favor."

Melissa sighed. All he said was right. She had felt it for a long time. The Doctor had no interest in her. He was simply being kind and keeping her out of the way. She'd be doing him a great favor by leaving. She looked into the room. Where was he? Oh, he was still climbing on those pipes. For the first time she saw the door in the wall, an extraneous door with no staircase leading to it. He was heading for that door.

Dr. Smith followed her gaze and grinned. Busted! She had believed every word he said. And now the Doctor was his. "Thank you very much for that, Miss Brogan. You've been a great help to us."

Melissa stared at him in horror, and then back at the Doctor. "Oh no. Doctor! Doc—"

"No no, now's not the time for yelling," Dr. Smith said covering her mouth. "You've got an appointment."

-CR-

The Doctor easily sonicked the door from his position on the pipes. Russell had remained on the ground. He didn't trust himself with heights. However, the Doctor truly didn't mind. In fact, he found the acrobatics exhilarating. With a heart-stopping lunge he crossed the gap and gripped onto the door handle. It turned easily. He swung it open and crawled inside. He grinned to himself. Now, there must be something very special in this room.

Wait a minute, things were going blurry. His head began to swim. Oh no, not again! He fell to the floor. A shadow approached him from the dark, holding another one of those necklaces. His eyes widened. No he would not go back to the nightmare world. "No, please, anything but that," he begged. "No, I can't take it anymore!"

However, the man didn't stop. He kept advancing. Shadows began to dance at the corner of the Doctor's vision. Oh no, here we go again. He tumbled back into the world of torment.


	6. Chapter 6

*A/N : Wow, over seven hundred views already! Okay, here's chapter six.

Chapter Six:

The Doctor awakened suddenly. His eyes flew open and he was back in the real world. The phantoms had dispersed. How long had they been around for? He had no idea. He felt that it had been days, months, maybe even years. His cheeks were damp. Goodness, was he really that weak to let his captors see just how much pain he was feeling? Well, it was terrible, terrible pain. All those people, all those faces, hating and condemning him.

He was still weak, he found. He tried to move. His hands were bound at some point above his head, and his legs were trapped in steel bands. He was dressed in only a shirt and pants. His pockets were empty, from the feel of them. He remembered the man approaching with the necklace. That was what must have happened. He was caught again. How did it happen? That room was not in use. It was simply a passageway to another level, he saw. A passageway that everyone had conveniently forgotten. After all, who'd pay attention to a door suspended thirty feet off the ground? And that room was as dusty and bare as some obscure man's tomb. The man must have been warned. But how? Russell had been with him, and Max had gone back to his little area. It must have been Melissa. Oh, poor Melissa. She would not be treated well for this. He had no doubt that she did not intend to betray him, not for a second. Her feelings were readily apparent on her face. As for Russell, well, he hoped he got away, but that was unlikely.

He looked around a little. The room he was in looked much like the observation room he had been in before, the place where he had found that weird door where he met his doom. Wow, that sounded overly dramatic. Well, it certainly did look like it now, meeting his doom. Anyway, because it looked so much like that other room, it must be on another level or adjacent to that room. However, unlike that room, this one was not empty. He saw their shapes silhouetted against the flashing colored lights on the many control panels along the wall. Daleks. About half a dozen of them. All of them had an arm embedded in the wall, their eyestalks watching data flow ceaselessly across the screen in front of them. However, they did not seem intent on ensuring his extermination. How very atypical of them. They probably had something else planned for him.

"THE DOCTOR IS AWAKE!"

The Doctor turned his head slowly. A single eyestalk stared menacingly down at him. "Yes, I am. So, are you going to tell me why I'm here? I doubt it's to have tea."

"THE DALEKS HAVE NO NEED FOR HUMAN BEVERAGES! THE DALEKS ARE HERE TO EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR!"

"Yes, I figured that much. Well, why don't you get on with it? Why don't you exterminate me? Come on, you've been wanting to for centuries."

"THE EXTERMINATION OF THE DOCTOR MUST BE POSTPONED UNTIL THE PROPER TIME! YOU MUST BE MADE TO SUFFER!"

"Oh, so you've planned a nice little torture session? Please, take it easy with the rack. I'm already tall enough. Any more and I'll have serious problems getting around in the TARDIS."

"YOU MOCK THE DALEKS, BUT SOON YOU WILL NO MORE! YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!"

"Well, why are you procrastinating? Come on, I just may escape."

"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE! ALL EXITS ARE SATURATED WITH THE BANE OF THE TIME LORDS!"

"So that's what you're calling it now."

"YOU SHALL BE EXTERMINATED ONCE THE GIRL IS PREPARED!"

The Doctor's head shot up. "Girl? Oh no. What have you done to Melissa?"

"SHE WILL BE A SERVANT OF THE DALEKS FOR A SHORT TIME! SHE SHALL BE THE ONE TO EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR!"

-CR-

Russell ran down the hallway. Everywhere he went there were more of those creepy men in glasses. He had his own on, but he could hardly see, and they just may find his behavior suspicious. He had to find Max. Something had gone wrong. He had heard the Doctor screaming from the room above. They had him now. And they had Melissa. He saw them take her. She must have been sedated or something. She followed behind them in a trance. So, he had to get to Max. Max would help him, but there was very little Max could do. Max wasn't the most intelligent sort. Oh, he knew plenty about brainwaves and computers and neurology, but he didn't know what to do if weird men in sunglasses were trying to take over the world. Very few people did, besides the Doctor.

Melissa was a nice girl, really, but that was all he had to say about her. He really wasn't one for brunettes, and he wanted something a little more than "nice". He needed some spice in his life. Clarice could be a real spitfire sometimes, and he liked that about her. She may look like a hot blonde, but she had a wit as sharp as a knife. She was nice, too, but she had backbone. Melissa didn't seem to have much of a backbone. And Melissa was needy and insecure. Clarice wasn't. They understood each other and loved each other, but they weren't absolutely dependent on each other. Melissa needed work and patience to be made ready for a relationship. He was not the one to do that. He was still awaiting Clarice's text. He hoped that she would understand. He sincerely hoped that he would be able to explain everything to her before he was killed or the world ended. That seemed to be where things were headed.

He turned the corner. There was the place he had woken up. That was where Max should be. He stepped inside. Max was standing in front of the screen, staring at it. Russell knew that something was dreadfully wrong. "What happened?" he asked.

"They've got Melissa," Max said.

"I saw that," Russell said.

"They're bringing her to the operating room," Max said, burying his face in his hands. "They want me to bring them a copy of her EEG. They—They're going to brainwash her."

"What? Well, that's better than them killing her, right?"

"No, it's worse. 'Cause more people will be killed and hurt because of her. And… well, what do you remember from being under?"

Russell wrinkled his forehead. "Not much. It's like last night's dream. It's all fading away."

"Well, I'm sure she'd rather die than do harm to anyone. And what if they have something more for her? What if they're going to punish her? I wonder if they can control you without wiping your awareness of things."

"I really don't know."

Max looked at the screen. His shoulders sagged. "The time's come. They want me to bring the recording. What do I do?"

"I have no idea."

Max sighed. "I have to give them something."

"Well, what if you give them the wrong one?"

Max shook his head. "That wouldn't do much. It may make her behave differently, but the microchip – or whatever it is they use – will still be able to control her. That is, hypothetically."

"What if you give them the record of my seizure activity? Take care of it like you did then?"

"No, the rhythm's too chaotic. They'd see through that in no time. I guess we're sunk."

Russell sighed and turned away.

Max took the CD and paused. "If only the Doctor was here."

"If only."

"You could leave," Max said, looking at Russell. "You could head out and they wouldn't stop you. You could get to safety, enjoy your girlfriend. You don't have to die here like the Doctor and Melissa probably will."

"I don't see the point. They're going to take over the world, anyway. I'd rather die now than spend a couple extra years with Clarice a coward. She'll never forgive me."

"You're a good man, Russell." Max sighed again. "May God have mercy on us."

-CR-

Melissa could feel the sedative wearing off. They hadn't given her much. Just enough to keep her from running, but not enough to hinder her from walking. She guessed they didn't want to end up carrying her. Still, it made no difference, sedative or not. She would not be making any getaway. She had betrayed the Doctor. He'd die because of her. She deserved whatever they had in store for her. She would never have taken a step to get away. What was the use in that?

She understood depression now. They hadn't covered mood disorders yet in school, but she had read ahead. It had looked interesting, she had been bored, and it had been a rainy afternoon. Besides, the book was considerably slimmer than her med-surg book and it had fancy little "clinical vignettes" that told a little story about the disorder featured. And psychiatric nursing was just an intriguing subject. Anyway, that was how she felt: worthless, guilty, hopeless, low self-esteem, preoccupied with death. She doubted that she would have been able to do anything other than just follow along with these people, not caring where they took her.

They stopped at a pair of double steel doors. One man stepped forward – Dr. Smith – and presented his badge. "We are here. Start preparing the implant."

Melissa looked around. It was like an operating room, she noticed. Numerous monitors where on the wall, and one narrow bed was in the center of the white room. There was another door nearby. The men marched her through this one to a row of beds, a few in number. They pushed her towards one and stood, waiting. She sat down on the bed, unsure of what to do. Then, in about a minute, the door opened again.

"You're late, Mr. Taylor," Dr. Smith said coldly.

"I – I had to copy the CD," Max said, sweating. "Sorry. I guess y'all were too fast for me today."

"Hello, Max," Melissa said, forcing out a small smile.

"Miss Brogan! How are you?"

"About as good as I can be, considering what I've just done."

"I'm sure none of it was your fault."

Melissa shook her head. "No. I could have done something differently."

"You will give the data to us," Dr. Smith said.

"Yes, yes," Max said, handing over the CD. The men left the room. "They'll be a few minutes. They need to download the EEG readings. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Melissa tried to smile again. "I don't suppose they use anesthesia."

"No, I don't think they do. They don't really need it, I guess."

"Is there anything you can give me? For the anxiety?"

Max shook his head. "I'm not an anesthesiologist. I can't give you anything to knock you out."

"But you did knock Russell out."

"Short-term."

"But still, that would help, wouldn't it?"

"I suppose…"

"Anything's better than nothing," Melissa said, her eyes pleading.

Max headed towards the cupboard. "Alright, I'll get you something. They're controlled substances, but I have the key." He unlocked the padlock. Soon he came towards her with a bottle in his hands. "Here. One pill should do the trick."

"Mr. Taylor, your work here is completed," Dr. Smith said stiffly, coming to the doorway.

Max hesitated.

"Go on, I can handle one pill," Melissa said.

Max slowly backed away. "I suppose. Just promise me you won't do anything reckless, okay?"

"I promise."

Max went out of the room.

"Miss Brogan, we'll be ready for you in three minutes," Dr. Smith said.

"Alright, just…I need time to pray. Alone. I know you're being mind-controlled by evil monsters, but surely you can give me just this one comfort? I don't suppose I can escape."

Dr. Smith stood there, motionless, looking as if he were considering this. "Escape is impossible. Your request is reasonable. Very well, you can have a moment alone in this room." He closed the door.

Melissa sighed and looked down at the bottle. Well, this was the only chance she had to save the Doctor. This was the only chance she had to beat this mind control thing. She had heard them chatting on the way down. They seemed to want her to do the honors. She was horrified at this. She had never even dreamed of killing someone. The Doctor should not die. He was the only one who could save them. If she had to die to save him, then so be it. It wouldn't be a terrible loss. Now that Russell didn't care for her, she had no one.

She opened the bottle and dumped several pills onto her hand. It was mostly full. She read somewhere that benzodiazepines could cause seizures when taken in overdose. That or slow down her nervous system a lot. She didn't know much about this mind control thing, but she figured that slow brain activity would not help its functioning. The problem was, she did not know exactly how much to take to have the desired effect. She didn't want to take too little. If she did, then she would kill the Doctor, and all would be lost. If she took too much, that could kill her before she could save the Doctor. Well, she'd rather die than kill the Doctor. Well, her choice was made. She would take the pills, all of them, and pray that she would last long enough to put an end to their homicidal plans. She emptied the bottle onto her lap.

-CR-

"So, what's with all this secrecy?" the Doctor asked. "Why covert tactics all of a sudden? What happened to all the diabolical Dalek schemes of reigning the universe through terror and bloodshed? Why are you hiding?"

"THE DALEKS HAVE FAILED TOO MANY TIMES! THE DALEKS HAVE EXAMINED THEIR FAILURES AND DETERMINED THEM TO BE THE CAUSE OF THE DOCTOR! THE DOCTOR MUST BE EXTERMINATED!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know that, but mind control? Come on! You've never used that before! Why start now?"

"THE DALEKS HAVE CONSTRUCTED A TRAP YOU COULD NOT RESIST! YOUR PET SPECIES IN DANGER ONCE AGAIN! YOU COULD NOT IGNORE THE DANGER! YOU COULD NOT SEE THE DALEKS BEHIND IT! THE DALEKS HAVE CAPTURED THE DOCTOR!"

"So, you did all of this just to get me? All of this… un-Daleky stuff?"

"THAT IS CORRECT! NOW YOU SHALL BE EXTERMINATED!"

"Well, what's with the long wait?"

"THE GIRL MUST BE PREPARED!"

"Yes, I know that. Why are you using the girl? Why Melissa? Why not kill me yourself? That would be an honor, killing the worst enemy of the Daleks. You'd be remembered through history, won't you?"

"CORRECT, BUT YOU MUST BE MADE TO SUFFER! THE LAST THING THE DOCTOR SHALL SEE IS HIS OWN COMPANION TAKING HIS LIFE!"

"But she's not my companion! I don't do that anymore!"

"SHE IS YOUR COMPANION! YOU SHALL SEE HER SUFFERING! SHE WILL BE CONSCIOUS OF ALL SHE DOES! SHE WILL NOT BE SPARED ANY PAIN! YOU SHALL SEE HER SUFFER, AND YOU SHALL THEN BE EXTERMINATED!"

The Doctor stared at the Dalek. "I've got to hand it to you. I've never heard a more awful plan."

"THE DALEKS HAVE DEFEATED THE DOCTOR! THE DALEKS REIGN SUPREME!"

-CR-

Russell watched helplessly as they began to operate on Melissa. As Dr. Smith's son, he had the "privilege" of overseeing the surgery. It wasn't too horrifying to watch, though. They had a high-tech gun thing that fired the microchip right into the side of her head. It bled a bit, but they simply pressed a dressing on it and it subsided in minutes. She seemed really out of it during the whole procedure. She didn't even wince at the shot of the gun. He suspected that they had given her a sedative or painkiller of some sort. Well, that was humane of them. He watched them as they wheeled her out of the room on a wheelchair. Some weakness, uncoordination, and disorientation was common after the operation, he seemed to remember. She went right to Max's room.

"Brain activity's a little slow," Max said thoughtfully.

"Will that interfere with anything?" Dr. Smith asked.

"No," Max said hastily, jumping back from the monitor. "No, it means nothing at all." He looked at Melissa as if she had some sort of secret or something she wasn't telling him but he knew was true.

"When will she be ready to work?"

"In a few minutes. Just… take her somewhere where she can rest."

"Immediately," Dr. Smith said. "Russell, you stay with Mr. Taylor, see if there's anything he needs."

"Right, Dad," Russell said.

Max squinted at the screens while the people left. He looked over his shoulder to make sure they were all gone. "So, they went through with it?"

"Of course they did," Russell said, taking his sunglasses off. "Why wouldn't they? They're evil megalomaniacs. What are you frowning at ?"

"I'm not sure how this is supposed to work," Max said, tracing Melissa's most recent EEG with his finger. "It's a lot different than yours. The initiator spikes – that's what I'm calling them – are different. I'm not sure if there's something wrong with the device or if this is normal and it's just not ready. I mean, look over here! There's a whole gap where one fails to go off. And they're all irregular and small. It's like… they can't get started. They can't pick up the energy."

"Is that a good thing?"

"It might be. But something's up with Melissa. She looks really sedated. I wonder… maybe they gave her something that interacted with the benzos, or –" he gasped and turned pale.

"What? What's wrong, Max?"

"No, she couldn't have! Still, it doesn't get any worse than this. I suppose she thinks she has no choice. And she's probably blaming herself for the whole thing, too."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing, I hope. Oh, I do hope I'm wrong. Come on, I've got to check something. We've got to hurry!"

-CR-

Melissa was glad that she was in a wheelchair. If she wasn't, she was certain that they would have noticed that something was wrong. Already she was feeling the effects of the benzos. It was a lot like being drunk, so she heard. She had never drank before, so she didn't really know for sure. All she knew was that she was so tired, and the room swam in front of her eyes. She was so clumsy, too, and she was certain that her speech was slurred. Not that it mattered, though. She probably couldn't think fast enough to say anything. Her thoughts were so, so slow. She'd probably be in a coma in minutes.

It was an interesting thing, this mind control. She could already feel it. She thought about getting up out of the chair and walking away, but her legs wouldn't move. She was trapped in her own body. However, every once in a while she could move a leg or something with considerable effort, but it was minimal. And painful. It was like there was a weight on top of her leg, and it felt like a hand had grabbed her brain and squeezed it when she tried. Sometimes she felt a jolt and she could move freely again, but then that vice squeezed again and she was trapped. Oh dear, she wasn't overdosed enough. She still had time, however. She hoped that it was enough. Too much and she'd be dead. Too little and she'd be powerless. It had to be just right.

-CR-

Max held the empty bottle. "She did it. She took all the pills."

"What does that mean?" Russell asked breathlessly. "Is she dead?"

Max let it drop to the floor and he remained there, crouching, staring into space. "No, not yet. It'd take a few hours before that. But it will be fatal."

"Isn't there an antidote?"

"Yes, there's a treatment, but how can we do it here? With all these creeps around? They'll get us for sure. They've already got the Doctor. Who knows? Maybe this will all work out. He's a smart guy."

"How can this work out?" Russell yelled. "The Doctor is trapped, Melissa has attempted suicide, and you and I are as good as dead anyway! Oh, and the whole world is at stake, too, in case you've forgotten."

"There's nothing we can do."

"Oh, yes, there is. There's bound to be weapons in this facility. Let's find them and show those monsters what Americans are made of, what happens if they try to mess with us here on earth."

Max stared at him.

"Oh, fine," Russell snorted. "I'll do it myself, then."

"No, I'll go with you. It's just that… I haven't really fired a gun before. I mean, not a real one. Bullets, not BB pellets."

"Ha, that doesn't matter. Come on, let's do some damage."

-CR-

"THE GIRL IS READY!" the Dalek on the communication screen said. "SHE IS BEING BROUGHT TO YOU IMMEDIATELY!"

"EXCELLENT!" was the reply. "THE DOCTOR SHALL BE EXTERMINATED IN MINUTES!"

The Doctor sighed and closed his eyes. He had been through many close scrapes before. This one was one of the worst. He was strapped down and powerless, no sonic screwdriver in reach. No one could negotiate with the Daleks. He had no companion, no one to help him. Melissa had failed him, and now she was on her way to kill him. There was really no escape now.

The door opened. As much as the Doctor hated to look, he couldn't stop himself. There was Melissa, swaying in the doorway, pupils massively dilated. She staggered forwards, Dr. Smith and several other men behind her. One of them carried a tray with two guns on it. Two Dalek guns. His hearts grew cold. He knew what they were for.

"THE GIRL IS READY! RECORDS SAY THAT IF BOTH OF A TIME LORD'S HEARTS STOP BEATING SIMULTANEOUSLY, THERE WILL BE NO CHANCE AT REGENERATION! THE GIRL SHALL FIRE BOTH GUNS AT ONCE AT BOTH OF HIS HEARTS! THE DOCTOR SHALL BE EXTERMINATED!"

"Oh, so you don't want to have the pleasure of killing me over and over again?" the Doctor said flippantly. "I thought it would be a bonus. You know, capture a Time Lord, feel free to torture him and watch him die twelve times in a row… or something like that…"

"SILENCE! IN SECONDS YOU SHALL NO LONGER SPEAK! THE UNIVERSE SHALL BE RID OF THE DOCTOR'S VOICE FOR ALL ETERNITY! GIRL, PRIME THE WEAPONS!"

Melissa unseeingly took the weapons. She expertly loaded and readied them. She was quite obviously under mind control, as no human would have been able to handle such an advanced firearm. She held them quite naturally, the way she would hold a pen and clipboard.

The Doctor had to try one more time. Melissa was still conscious. There was a mind in that body. If she could hear him, then there was still hope. She could still fight it. "Melissa, listen to me! You can't do this! I mean, can you really kill someone? Don't let them do this to you! Fight it!"

"SILENCE, DOCTOR! SPEAKING TO HER IS FUTILE! SHE CAN HEAR YOU, BUT SHE CANNOT DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE DALEKS DICTATE! SHE IS UNDER FULL CONTROL OF THE DALEKS!"

Melissa seemed to hesitate. She stepped forward clumsily until she was right over the Doctor. He stared deep into her eyes, but there was nothing in them. Whatever the Daleks had done, they had restricted her expressions, too. There was no way the girl inside could communicate. There was no way he could tell if he heard her. She held the guns up with shaking hands.

"WHY DO YOU HESITATE? FIRE!"

In one single explosion, both guns went off.

*A/N : Uh oh, a cliffhanger! I'm cruel, aren't I?


	7. Chapter 7

*A/N Sorry this came a little late. I've been busy. The past three nights I've been up working. I was able to write this, but I had no Internet access and couldn't submit it. Well, here it is.

Chapter Seven:

The Doctor shut his eyes tight when the guns went off. For a moment his ears rang. Wait a minute, he was supposed to be dead, so why were his ears ringing? He wasn't supposed to have any ears! He felt no pain. The guns had missed him entirely. Not even a hair was singed. He opened his eyes slowly. What had happened? If Melissa hadn't shot him, then that meant that she had resisted the Daleks and regained control of her own body. How did she do that? Even though he had encouraged her to fight it, he doubted that anyone would have been able to. This was not brainwashing. This was biological brain rhythm control. One could not rebel against his or her electrical rhythm. So, she must have done something, or the Daleks must have botched the operation, which was unlikely for the Daleks. The Daleks were very good at planning things out. They actually needed his help to ruin their plans.

He looked around. Melissa was slumped over the table by his feet, barely holding on. She did not look good. Whatever she had done must have been drastic. "Melissa?" he asked. "What did you do?"

"I'm sorry, Doctor," she said in a garbled voice. "I couldn't kill you. This was the only way I could think of."

"What? How did you resist them?"

"I overdosed on a sedative. I thought it would change my brain activity enough that they couldn't control me." She looked up at the wall. Two smoking holes stared back at her like a pair of startled eyes. "I was right."

"You – you committed suicide? Just so I could live?"

"If you live, then many others would. It's not because of you. I got us into this whole thing."

"No, you didn't. You didn't know. Very few would have done any differently. You didn't have to do this."

"No, I didn't have to. I chose to." She leaned over, her body too weak to hold her up anymore.

The Dalek came closer. "THE DOCTOR IS STILL ALIVE! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO EXTERMINATE HIM!"

"Well, I didn't," Melissa said, tossing her head and glaring right into its one eyestalk.

"EXPLAIN? YOU HAVE BEEN CONDITIONED TO OBEY THE DALEKS! REBELLION IS NOT POSSIBLE!"

"Well, not entirely," Melissa said with a smirk.

"YOU MOCK THE DALEKS! YOU SHOULD FEAR US! WE SHALL EXTERMINATE YOU AND THE DOCTOR!"

"See if I care. I'm already dying anyway."

The Dalek's eyestalk roved over her figure as if it were scanning her. "BRAIN ACTIVITY IS REMARKABLY DEPRESSED. IN TWO MINUTES IT WILL BE AT A COMA STATE. ALL VITAL FUNCTIONS WILL CEASE WITHIN FORTY MINUTES. YOU ARE CORRECT."

"Told you. I'm not afraid of you anymore."

"THE DALEKS SHALL EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR! THE GIRL SHALL DIE! DALEKS REIGN SUPREME!"

"THE DALEKS REIGN SUPREME! THE DALEKS REIGN SUPREME!" The room filled with the grating monotones. The Daleks at the computer turned their heads to look in their direction. The Doctor wondered why they didn't immediately come after them. It must be something to do with the computer. Whatever they were doing, it couldn't be stopped in a hurry. The Daleks were actually making themselves vulnerable just so they could catch him.

Melissa stiffened and looked over at the Doctor. She tried to tug at the steel bands encircling his wrists. "No!" the Doctor said. "Forget about me! There's two dozen Daleks in this room!"

"Any ideas on how to take care of them?" Melissa asked.

"No. Normally that would consist of me getting up and waving my sonic screwdriver at them, but I'm a little incapacitated right now."

"Then let me help you." She fumbled with the bands again.

The Doctor glanced at the other Dalek, the one that was free from the computer. "Well? Why aren't you doing anything?"

"NO INTERVENTIONS ARE NECESSARY. YOU SHALL NOT ESCAPE THIS ROOM."

"But with me, you know, things don't always go along the more likely route."

"MY WEAPON SYSTEMS ARE FULLY OPERATIONAL!"

"I wasn't saying that they weren't."

"EXTERMINATE THEM!"

Melissa gave up on trying to release the bands. She looked over at the wall of Daleks, still attached to the computer, but for how long? She didn't know what she was thinking. All she knew was that in the next moment there was an explosion and the wall burst into flames. She looked down at her hand. She had never thought of using that gun. She didn't even try to find out how one fired it. It was all a desperate reflex. An unearthly metallic shrieking filled the air. The Daleks were still connected to the machine. Smoke and sparks surrounded them. Their casings started to crackle with electricity. And then, one by one, their tops exploded with a pop and they became silent.

The Doctor gaped at them. "So that's why you were afraid to shoot. You didn't want to kill your friends. The psychosomatic feedback would be lethal, even to Daleks, I imagine. That's why it takes so long for you to disconnect."

"DALEKS DO NOT HAVE FRIENDSHIPS! YOU SHALL BE EXTERMINATED! THERE IS NO RISK OF FURTHER DAMAGE!"

"Uh oh, that doesn't sound too good," the Doctor muttered.

Melissa collapsed to her knees. She had to help the Doctor. The Dalek was going to kill him. But she couldn't do anything. Her arms were as limp as seaweed. She could not have lifted a finger to help him. Her eyes could hardly stay open. She fought to stay conscious.

The Dalek approached the Doctor, its weapon trained on him. The Doctor stared him down. Well, there was very little he could do now. Melissa couldn't really help anymore. This was probably the end for him.

Except that there was an urgent call for the remaining Dalek.

"DALEK KAR PLEASE REPORT TO UPPER FLOOR! WE ARE UNDER ATTACK! BRING YOUR SOLDIERS!"

"Ooh, looks like they need backup," the Doctor said cheerily.

The Dalek slowly turned its head around to look down on him. "YOU SHALL REMAIN HERE! YOU ARE NO THREAT TO THE DALEKS! YOUR COMPANION WON'T BE ABLE TO ASSIST YOU!" Then it slid across the floor to the door.

A muffled thud caught the Doctor's attention. He looked over to where he had last seen Melissa. She was nothing but a heap on the floor. "Melissa!" he cried, but she did not answer. He tugged at his steel cuffs, but they did not budge. If the Dalek was right, then she would be dead in little over half an hour. And there was nothing he could do to save her. Again. Not another one!

-CR-

Dr. Smith suddenly had a headache. It was probably the worst he had ever experienced. It felt like his head was about to explode, as if it were stuffed full of fiery coals that were cooking his brain. It was unbearable, but then it was over. It had come and gone in a little over a second. And now his eyes hurt. They felt as if they were full of sand. He tried to wipe at them, but then he realized that he was wearing glasses. What? Oh, they were sunglasses, but he was indoors. What was going on? He had a gun in his hand! He had never had a gun before. His brother was the hunter, not him.

He looked up, his vision blurring with the flood of tears that were trying to remedy the painful dryness. There was a hazy figure in front of him.

"Dad?"

Dr. Smith rubbed at his eyes again. "Russell? Is that you?"

"Dad? What's going on?"

Dr. Smith's vision began to clear slightly. There was a circle of men around two other men in the center. They all had guns trained on them. One of those two men was his son. As he looked at the group, he realized that a handful of them were shaking their heads bewhilderedly and rubbing their eyes. He wasn't the only confused one. However, there were still a good group of people with sunglasses who still had guns and who looked like they were about to use them.

"You tell me," Dr. Smith said, staring at everyone in the circle. He felt like he had been sleepwalking or something. The last thing he remembered was leaving for work and getting into a little car crash. "What happened to me? Did I get a head injury from that crash?"

"You never told us about a crash," Russell said. "You just came home one day and you were different. You never took of your sunglasses afterwards. And then you took me to work one day and…" he shrugged. "The same thing happened to me."

"What's going on here?"

"Well, you were about to kill us," Russell explained. "You caught us sneaking around. Now, some of y'all look like you're still thinking of that."

"We'd better run," one man said. "This way!"

They began to hurry down the hall. Dr. Smith glanced over his shoulder. The men were just standing there, looking at each other expectantly. They were like a bunch of robots that were awaiting their instructions. "They're not coming after us," Dr. Smith said. "I think we got away from them."

"Still, we need to hide somewhere," Russell said. "We may run into another patrol."

"My office," the man who was with Russell said. "We could hide there for now." He looked like a good guy, a little simple perhaps, but still a nice chap, Dr. Smith thought.

They had a small group, about a dozen. They packed into the tiny office tightly, but twelve people couldn't do much about an army of brutal brain-washed soldiers. "Now, what happened, son?" Dr. Smith asked.

"You were being mind-controlled by these… creatures called Daleks," Russell said. "They think they're top dogs and deserve to rule the universe, but there was this guy who keeps stopping them. They call him the Doctor. I'm not sure who he is – _what_ he is – but he's in trouble now. They put all this together just so they could catch him and kill him. If we could find him and help him, then he may save us. We're next, you see."

"So they used me and turned me into a zombie just so they could have their revenge?" Dr. Smith asked.

"And take over the universe. It'll be easier without the Doctor."

Dr. Smith sighed. "So, what happened to you? How did you get free?"

"There was a girl they found. They used me as bait to get her. But she was smart enough to figure out how to cure me. What about you?"

"I don't know. All I remember is getting a bad headache. What happened to this girl?"

"They took her to make her like what we were. They wanted her to kill the Doctor, but she took some pills to stop herself."

"What kind of pills?"

Russell reached into his pocket and pulled out the container. "She took the whole bottle."

Dr. Smith looked solemnly at the bottle. "There's still hope for her. There's an antidote… and we can support her if we find her in time."

"We do have the antidote," Russell's companion said. "In case of emergencies. They use it a lot here. I think we also have some life support. I'm trained in intubation."

"They used a CPAP on the Doctor, Max," Russell said. "If we could get her down there, we'd be able to save her."

"But first the Doctor," Dr. Smith said. "The way I understand it is that if he goes, we all go."

"That's about it."

"Where did they take him?"

"I-I don't know."

"Fifth floor," Max said. "They were talking about it while I was there. He's on the fifth floor in the south wing. I've never been up there, though."

"So, we all go up there with all our guns," Russell said.

"I'll find that room if you give me directions to it, Max," Dr. Smith said. "The one with all the life support equipment. I've never fired a gun before. I'll be more use down there than with y'all."

"It's very easy to find," Max said. He quickly gave him directions.

"Dad?" Russell said. "Keep the sunglasses on. That seems to work well as a disguise."

Dr. Smith turned to his son. "Russell, what happened back there? Was I – was I about to shoot you?"

Russell looked down at his feet. "Well, that's kind of obvious."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Dad. I know you'd never do something like that. It was the Daleks. You're okay now."

"We've got to get moving," another man said.

"I love you, son," Dr. Smith said. "I don't remember the last time I said that."

"I know," Russell said bashfully. "You don't have to tell me. It's sort of understood. Come on, we've got to hurry."

-CR-

The Daleks had been watching as Melissa neared the Doctor with those two guns. The air was still and silent with expectation. In less than a minute the Daleks' worst enemy would be history. However, when the girl resisted, discord broke out among them. "SHE BROKE THROUGH THE CONDITIONING! THE IMPLANT WAS FAULTY!"

"THE IMPLANT WAS TESTED BEFORE THE OPERATION! IT'S FUNCTION WAS ADEQUATE!"

"THE GIRL IS RESISTING! THE DOCTOR HAS BEEN SPARED!"

The Daleks fell silent as they saw the console being destroyed and their fellow soldiers perishing in terrible pain. They did not mourn the loss, but they knew that it was inexcusable.

"HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? DALEKS ARE SUPERIOR! DALEKS CANNOT BE DESTROYED BY THAT WEAPON!"

"THE DALEK SOLDIERS WERE NOT DESTROYED BY THE WEAPON! THEY WERE DESTROYED BY THE FEEDBACK OF THE COMPUTER WHEN IT WAS DAMAGED!"

"EXPLAIN!"

"EACH DALEK CONTROLS DOZENS OF HUMANS! THEY MUST KEEP THEIR BRAIN ACTIVITY AT A SIMILAR LEVEL! ONCE THE CONTROL BREAKS, BRAIN ACTIVITY DRAMATICALLLY INCREASES AND CAN DESTROY LIFEFORMS!"

"WHY DID DALEKS MAKE THEMSELVES VULNERABLE? DALEKS REIGN SUPREME! DALEKS ARE IMMORTAL!" Well, unless the Doctor was around.

"HAVING THE DOCTOR DESTROYED IS WORTH BEING VULNERABLE! THERE IS SAFETY! WE PROTECT OUR SOLDIERS!"

In just a few moments it would be seen just how effective that protection was. There was a pounding at the door.

"INTRUDER! NO HUMAN IS AUTHORIZED TO COME TO THIS WING!"

The door burst open and a group of yelling, angry men barged in, waving pistols at the Daleks. Of course, the Daleks had their weapons at the ready, but there were consoles all around the room. If they did not shoot with accuracy, then many Dalek lives would be lost as a cost. There were numerous Daleks in the room, all with deadly weapons, but only half a dozen were not connected to any computers, and they were hesitant to fire. However, the other Daleks were aware of them, and they were hastily trying to disconnect themselves. Within minutes the men would be hopelessly outnumbered.

"HUMANS! WHY DO YOU PENETRATE THE STRONGHOLD OF THE DALEKS?"

One of the men sneered at the Dalek that approached. "You don't belong here. We've been on this planet for billions of years. We've got no place for talking garbage cans."

"YOUR PRIMITIVE WEAPONS CANNOT PENETRATE DALEK ARMOR! YOU SHALL BE EXTERMINATED!"

The group hesitated, and then they scattered. The few Daleks who were able were pursuing them, but their pace was not as swift as a human's. Usually this did not impede them, as their weapons were speedy and efficient. Now, however, they couldn't use their weapons as indiscriminately as they usually did. If those computers were destroyed, their population would decrease dramatically. This wasn't as bad as it sounded, as a few Daleks could still do a lot of damage, but there were worse things. Once those computers were gone, hundreds of people would be out from under their control. They would be outnumbered. This wasn't too bad, though, because their weapons could slaughter thousands of them, but what if one of them found the Doctor? Then the Daleks would definitely be in trouble. Therefore, it was not a good idea to shoot at the computers.

"SEAL THE DOORS!" one Dalek screamed. "THE HUMANS WILL BE CONTAINED UNTIL THEY CAN BE EXTERMINATED! THERE IS NO WAY OUT FOR THEM!"

One of the men fired at a Dalek. The bullet didn't even scratch its metal armor. Its eyestalk stared at him gloatingly, daring him to try again. However, the man only fled. Russell saw this. He looked over at Max. The poor man was looking down at his gun. Their weapons were useless against the Daleks. They were sunk.

-CR-

Dr. Smith was almost at his destination. He slipped through another pair of double doors. His eyes were quickly returning to normal. They only felt a little dry now. He didn't need the sunglasses at all. However, he kept his son's advice and wore them. He didn't know who he'd run into.

He smiled. Yes, there was the room. He was on the observation balcony, the very place Melissa had been only a few hours before. He looked down into the white room. There was only one bed in the middle, but it was surrounded by equipment and cupboards and all other kinds of stuff. He found the staircase and descended.

He quickly found all the equipment he thought that they would most likely need for Melissa. He was a doctor, so he knew what he was looking for. He found the ventilator. It only had a facemask, and he couldn't see any intubation equipment in the room at all. He hoped that Melissa wasn't too ill. There was only so much positive pressure could do without a patent airway. And then there was the ECG. Very good. It even had paddles attached. He was heading over to the cupboards to see what kind of medications he could find when the doors opened.

"What are you doing here?" a single voice demanded.

He looked behind him. A whole group of men in dark sunglasses were looking at him. This didn't look good. Oh wait, he still had his sunglasses on. He wondered if he could carry this off. He had never lied before. Well, lied _convincingly_. He always seemed to get caught.

"There's been an accident," he said. "I need to get stuff ready for the casualty. It sounds pretty serious."

The man in front remained silent. It was as if he were waiting for a reply. In fact, he probably was, from what Dr. Smith knew about this kind of mind control. "No accident has been reported," the man suddenly said. "There is no need for you to be in this room."

"Perhaps I was mistaken."

"There are no mistakes here. You are an intruder. Exterminate the intruder!"

Everyone aimed their pistols at him.

-CR-

Russell's phone vibrated. He felt it in his pocket. Even though he was hiding from Daleks and just trying to survive (although he didn't know why, as there was really no way to escape) he still took it out and looked at the number. Clarice. His girlfriend. He smiled.

"What's happened to you, Russell?" she asked.

"I was brainwashed by aliens," he said in a low voice. "I know it's hard to believe, but please, trust me."

There was a pause. "That's too ridiculous to believe."

"It's true, Clarice."

"Well, it's gotta be. That's not really a good excuse for ditching your girlfriend."

"Did I ditch you?"

"Something like that. You were just acting really weird. Ever since your dad recruited you, you'd think of nothing else besides that Doctor person. I-I had to leave."

"I'm not like that anymore. I can explain the whole thing. There's these aliens called the Daleks. They want to take over the universe or something. Except they've never been able to because this guy called the Doctor stops them every time. So they decided to finally get him out of the way."

"So the Doctor's the good guy?"

"Yes. Sort of makes sense, doesn't it? I mean, they got all these people and put them under mind control so they could track down and catch the Doctor. I was one of them."

There was another pause. "I'm so sorry, Russell."

"No, I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have let them do this to me. Now things are looking pretty hopeless. The Doctor's stuck, the girl who helped him is dying, and we're trying to stop those monsters but we can't. They're too powerful. I think – I think that this is it."

"What?"

"I don't think I'm going to get out of this. I-I love you."

"What's going to happen?"

"Well, they're going to kill us here, then they're going to get the Doctor, and then they're probably going to get rid of everybody else on this planet."

"Is there any way we can stop them?"

"Get the Doctor, but we're stuck. I'm sorry, Clarice, but it's pretty bad right now."

"Well, you did your best."

"I'm so sorry, Clarice. I'm sorry I put you through this all."

"No, it's not your fault. I love you, Russell. At first I blamed you, but not anymore. Not now that we've talked."

"Thank you."

"Get out there. Get some of those… whatever you call 'em. Get the Doctor. Save the world."

"And you pray for a miracle."

"Right."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Russell stuffed his phone in his pocket. He looked around. No one had been injured yet, but it was nothing to do with skill or courage. The Daleks just followed them around in no particular hurry. They seemed to be just waiting for something. They weren't shooting, but they weren't concerned either. They were acting like the people were just annoying little flies that buzzed around one's head, not able to do much else besides buzz and maybe give them an itchy bug bite. In a little bit they'd get out the flyswatter, but there was no hurry.

Russell was ready. There was no way out of this one. He had cleared things up with Clarice. He had taken care of things.

There was a screen up on one of the walls. He watched it for a while. It showed a room with a crumpled heap on the floor. There was a bed in the upper left corner, and someone was chained to it. It was the Doctor. An expression of weariness and sorrow was on his face. He had seen too much. Was this the face of the man who saved worlds? Was this the man who brought down terrifying, brutal civilizations? No, this was the face of a man who was tired of what life had thrown at him. He wasn't sure if the two went together, heroism and suffering.

He looked again at the crumpled heap on the floor. It was a person. A person with dark hair. It must have been Melissa. He couldn't see her breathing. He wasn't sure if she was still alive. Even if they defeated these Daleks, they may still be too late. Poor Doctor, having her die right in front of him, after all he'd been through. It must be unbearable, especially since he could have been to blame. Not that he was. He hadn't done anything wrong, besides the odd mistake or two. However, that didn't matter much in hindsight. Looking back at things revealed more options than looking forward to them did. Still, he wished that the Doctor didn't need to suffer as much. If only this had never happened…

*A/N One more chapter to go! How's the Doctor going to escape? You know he has to. Will Melissa survive? Will she travel with the Doctor? Come back next week to find out!


	8. Chapter 8

*A/N Okay, last chapter!

Chapter Eight:

No one knew who fired the first shot. All they knew was that someone's gun went off, and then chaos broke out. One of the panels exploded. Flames leapt up from it. The console lit up and sparked all the way down the wall. The Daleks who were connected screamed helplessly. The humans watched, open-mouthed, as the whole row seemed to explode. One by one their tops popped off, and their eyestalks grew dim. Russell wasn't sure what had happened, but he knew that those Daleks were dead. "Everybody!" he cried. "Shoot at the panels!" He took his own gun and fired a couple rounds into a nearby console. Just like with the first row, all the Daleks were destroyed by the feedback. The free Daleks stopped chasing their quarry and looked around.

"WHAT IS HAPPENING? WHY ARE THE HUMANS ATTACKING THE DALEKS AND SUCCEEDING? THEY ARE INFERIOR!"

"EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!" The room chorused with the Daleks' war cry. However, with a series of explosions, those voices were silenced. Soon there were only three of them left. Three Dalek soldiers against a dozen armed men. Under normal circumstances the Daleks would have open fired, now that there were no reasons to refrain from doing so. However, the room was beginning to fill with a thick, dark smoke from the consoles. The humans immediately ducked down, but the Daleks were unable to. The Daleks weren't in any danger from toxic fumes, but the smoke was thick and they couldn't see well. On the other hand, the humans found out that there was thinner smoke near the floor, and they began to crawl quickly towards the doors.

"FIRE! EXTERMINATE THE HUMANS!" the lead Dalek cried.

"EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!" all the others hollered. They began to shoot all around the room. However, their momentary disorientation from the smoke had come at a great price. The humans had reached the doors, and somehow someone must have shot the controls for the doors, because now they were unlocked. The humans couldn't believe their luck as they escaped. However, the Daleks were still after them, and wherever Daleks were disaster was soon to follow, no matter how few they were.

-CR-

Dr. Smith cringed as the gun barrel was pressed against his temple. He wondered if Russell had felt the same way. No, of course he hadn't. It was far different to have your own father pull out a gun on you. He was just surrounded by people he didn't even know. Still, he was going to die. He wondered what had happened to the others. Did they make it? Was there any hope for them? There must be millions of these Dalek things around. With their luck, they'd probably be invincible. Things looked pretty bleak. He was going to die, his son and his crew were going to die, Melissa was going to die, and the Doctor was going to die. And probably everyone else on earth, too. Well, they might be made into slaves. Dr. Smith didn't really know what the Daleks wanted exactly. Nevertheless, it was a sad end to the human race.

Suddenly, the gun dropped to the floor. Dr. Smith was afraid to move. He heard a string of very naughty words coming from his would-be murderer. He turned his head cautiously and saw him rubbing his eyes.

"&*%!" the man said. "My eyes, my $#% eyes!"

"Are – are you okay?" Dr. Smith asked.

"What does it look like?" the man snapped. "Who are you? What did you do to me? What is this place? What do you hope to gain from kidnapping me? Well, you're not going to get anything from me."

Dr. Smith sighed. This man did not have the most pleasant personality. "I didn't do anything. I'm on the good guys' side."

"Yeah, like I'm going to believe that."

"I really think you should. I'm trying to help. You'd do good to help me."

"Why should I? Tell me exactly what's happening here!"

"No time to explain. I'm trying to save a girl's life here. Help me or stay away."

"Oh, yeah, with that $%#^$ attitude, I'm going to be steering clear of you."

Dr. Smith watched as he left. "Attitude?" he muttered. "Who's the one with attitude?"

The whole group was either blinking in bewilderment, rubbing their eyes, or trying desperately to talk to someone right next to them who wasn't really listening. Dr. Smith sighed. "Okay, so y'all woke up?"

"I guess so," a man said timidly.

"Just… wait outside," Dr. Smith said. "I'm really busy. Keep watch for any… nonhuman things out there. I'll answer your questions later… if I can." He went back to the cupboards. "Let's see if there's any Romazicon…"

-CR-

"THE DALEKS MUST EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR! THE TIME LORD MUST BE EXTERMINATED!"

"THE DALEKS WILL EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR! HE IS STILL CONTAINED! HE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO LEAVE HIS PRISON!"

"HIS APE PETS HAVE ESCAPED! THEY WILL RESCUE HIM!"

"THEN WE SHALL MOVE QUICKLY!"

"TRANSMISSION FROM THE VORTEX!" a newly arriving Dalek said. "IT IS FROM ANOTHER GROUP OF DALEKS!"

"WE SHALL EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR!" the lead Dalek said to the new arrival. "THE DALEKS SHALL BE FREE OF HIS MEDDLING!"

"THE DALEKS NEED THE DOCTOR! THE DOCTOR MUST LIVE FOR THE TIME BEING!"

The lead Dalek stared down at him for a long moment. "EXPLAIN! THE DALEKS DO NOT NEED THE DOCTOR! THE DOCTOR SHALL BE EXTERMINATED!"

"THE DOCTOR SHALL BE USED TO RAISE A BETTER RACE OF DALEKS! THE DOCTOR SHALL HELP THE DALEKS DESTROY THE WORLD!"

"WHY DO THE DALEKS REQUIRE THE DOCTOR?"

"THE DALEKS NEED HIS TESTIMONY! HE SHALL BE TRICKED INTO HELPING THE DALEKS! THE DALEKS MUST ACTIVATE THE TEMPORAL SHIFT!"

"WHEN SHALL THIS HAPPEN?"

"1944 IN EARTH YEARS!"

"AGREED! THE DALEKS WILL DEPART!"

And then, just like that, the Daleks were gone. However, they would soon come back, as the Daleks always did.

-CR-

"I'm so sorry," the Doctor said. "I'm so very sorry. You were brilliant, Melissa R Brogan. I would have taken you travelling if it were another time, and if I weren't about to get slaughtered by Daleks. I wonder where you'd like to go? Would you like to see Florence Nightingale? I'm sure you would. You'd like to see what it's all about, nursing, and how it started. She was a wonderful woman. You would have loved to meet her."

Melissa didn't respond. She couldn't. The Doctor wasn't even sure if she was still breathing.

"I don't know why I keep doing it. Saving people. I can't save everyone. Oh, I can save a lot of people, but then I come across someone like you whom I can't save. You gave everything. You gave more than I ever did. And this is your reward. I can't do this anymore, watch people die. I think – I think that old Ood was right, my song is ending. And sometimes I want it to end. I'm so tired. Have you ever been this tired? So tired that you wonder what exactly it is you are doing, why you're doing it, and if it really matters?" He sighed. "I don't suppose it matters anymore. I mean, this is it. The Daleks are finally going to finish me off. The song's over. No replay. Is this what I want?"

The question hung in the empty air for a moment, and then there was an answer. Not a verbal answer, but a noise. Someone was at the door, trying to pry it open. The Doctor lifted his head. What was going on? Daleks wouldn't open the door like that. They would use their plungered appendages to activate the computer controlling the door. This place wasn't really made for humans. While he was thinking about this, a rapid sequence of gunfire rang out. The humans were here, but what were they shooting at? He had his answer soon, as the doors slid open easily. They must have fired at the mechanism, hoping to damage it enough so that it would unlock.

"Doctor!" Russell said. "How's Melissa?"

"I don't know," the Doctor said. "What happened? What happened to all the Daleks?"

"We destroyed most of them. We found out that by shooting at the consoles we could wipe them out. There're still three of them wandering about , though. At least. We could have missed some."

Someone came and undid the Doctor's shackles. Apparently there was a release switch beneath the table that Melissa hadn't reached. The bed was made for humans, not Daleks. "Check Melissa," he said, rubbing his wrists.

Max was already kneeling over her. "She's alive, but only just. She's breathing real shallow. I-I'm afraid to move her."

"Well, get her down to dad," Russell said. "Take a few men with you and hurry! I'll stay here with the Doctor and some help."

Max selected his team and they promptly left, carrying Melissa very gently between them.

"Doctor, how are you feeling?" Russell asked.

"Well enough," the Doctor said. "I think I can walk on my own."

"Well, we're here if you need any help."

The Doctor stood up and walked towards the door. However, a familiar clouding came over his senses. His head began to reel. "Oh no," he said. "That drug… the door's laced with it!"

"There's another door over here," a man said, pointing into a corner.

The Doctor advanced, but he soon stepped back, shaking his head. "No, that one, too. They must have been trying to prevent my escape. I'm sick and tired of that stuff!"

"Is—Is there any other route?"

The Doctor quickly scanned the room. "No, doesn't look like it. Well, we'll just have to go through it." He put his arms over two men's shoulders. "Just go straight ahead, whatever happens. The quicker the better."

They marched towards the door. Pretty soon the familiar symptoms overtook him. He fought it. No, he did not want to see those phantoms again, not after all he had been through. However, the drug was strong, and he was soon fading into that horrific nightmare. Well, it wouldn't be for long. He held onto that thought as if it were a lifesaver.

-CR-

Melissa was still breathing when Max laid her down on the table in front of Dr. Smith, but it was so shallow that it could hardly be called breathing. Dr. Smith looked down at her solemnly. "Max, can you start an IV?" he asked.

Max shrugged. "If I can find a vein."

Dr. Smith tossed the IV start kit towards him. "Then start looking. Oh, and here's a bag of normal saline. I think 50 mLs an hour should be sufficient."

Max hung the bag and primed the tubing while Dr. Smith went to the ventilator. He put the large mask over Melissa's face and then started the machine. He put the pulse oximeter onto a finger. "O2 sats are at 85%, and her pulse is 47." He began to take her blood pressure. "70 over 54. Not good."

"Where's the drug?" Max asked. "The antidote?"

"Right here. I'm waiting for you to start that IV. I'm keeping her oxygenated until then."

"Guess I'd better hurry up, then."

"That's Luerlock, right?"

Max squinted at the package. "Yes. Luerlock."

"Good. This syringe is, too. No needles needed." He had to use one to remove the drug from the vial, though. "When's the Doctor going to come?"

Max shrugged. "I don't know. They may have had a few problems. Oh, I hope they didn't run into one of those Daleks. There are still a few out there."

"Yeah, what happened?" Dr. Smith asked. "I was standing here with several dozen guns pointing at me, and then all of the sudden the people sort of… woke up."

"We interrupted their control, the Daleks' control."

"Oh. How did you do that?"

"We shot at their computers. That destroyed most of them."

"Well, that sounds like a simple solution."

"The last three weren't connected, though. We can't shoot them. They're practically invincible, if they're not hooked up to one of those computers, that is."

"Well, I hope that none of them decides to drop by."

The door suddenly opened. All the occupants in the room except for Melissa looked up anxiously. Had the Daleks found them? Were they here to finish them off? Had some of their brainwashed soldiers come? However, it was only Russell and his group, along with a still form on a wheelchair.

"Is that the Doctor?" Dr. Smith asked. "Doesn't look too good."

"He's been out since we went through those doors," Russell said. "There must have been some drug in them. He's mentioned that he had it before."

"Watch him. I don't want two patients."

"Could you just… you know, check him? Just to make sure. He's been out for a while. I'm worried. Of course, take care of Melissa first."

"Oh, we're almost done with her. Max, can you give IV medications?"

"I used to be an LVN," Max said. "Yes, I can. I've had plenty of practice here with the sedatives."

"Okay. 3 mcgs Romazicon, push it slow. She should wake up pretty quickly."

Max went to the table and picked up the syringe.

"Let's look at our hero," Dr. Smith said. He pulled out a stethoscope and walked over to the Doctor. "I'll just see if he's stable." He pressed the diaphragm to his chest and frowned when he heard the Doctor's double heartbeat.

"What is it, Dad?" Russell asked. "Is – Is he okay?"

"If it were before, I would think that I was hallucinating," Dr. Smith said. "But now, after the Daleks and mind control and everything, I can see that I'm really hearing this. This man has two hearts."

"Two hearts?" Russell exclaimed, frowning.

"This man is an alien. He must be. The Daleks are aliens. He knows a lot about them, so he must be an alien, too."

"Well then, he's a good alien."

"Not necessarily, Russell. We hardly know anything at all about him. He could be worse than even the Daleks. Watch him closely. Don't let him get away. We need him in our custody."

"But Dad, he's saved the world! He's saved us!"

"We don't know what he's like. We must act with caution. We don't want this happening again. Well, other than the two hearts, he seems to be fine." He walked over to Melissa. "How's she doing?"

"Her oxygen's sitting at 99% now," Max said. "I gave the Romazicon about a minute ago. She should be – ah, there we go. Wow, it really is fast."

Melissa's eyes flickered open. She looked up at a ceiling for a moment, thinking. Then she saw the faces nearby. She looked up at them and smiled from beneath the large CPAP mask. Dr. Smith smiled back and removed it. It came off with a loud rushing noise.

"So, I guess I'm not dead?" Melissa asked.

"No, I guess not," Dr. Smith said.

"And the Doctor? How is he?"

"Unconscious. The doors had something in them that knocked him out."

"Oh, so we're out?" She looked around. "How did that happen? What happened to the Daleks?"

"Most of them were blown up as we shot the consoles."

Melissa smiled. "Oh, so you found that out, too?"

"By accident," Russell quipped from the corner.

"So, who's made it?"

"So far we don't know of anyone who didn't," Dr. Smith said.

"That's good," Melissa said. She sat up. After all that thinking about dying, she had resigned herself to that fate. She did not regret that decision. Now that she wasn't actually dead, she felt weird. She had looked at her life and saw that nothing really appealed to her anymore. She had nothing here for her. She sighed. What reason did she have to keep on living? If only things could change.

-CR-

The Doctor felt the phantoms fading away. Oh, what a relief. How long had it been this time? He hoped that this was the last time. He was so tired of this. All those past apparitions coming to mock and berate him. He had almost given up. He felt so weak. He felt drained. He didn't even open his eyes. Melissa had visited him again and spoke to him along with Rose, Donna, and all those other people who had suffered and died because of him. With time, the things they said had become worse and worse. He couldn't help believing the first things, the ones that he had been thinking himself before, but then they continued. As soon as he would admit to those things, they'd go on to the next level. He wondered how whoever had made this poison had made it so that it could completely break a Time Lord from the inside out. Right now he wasn't sure he wanted to live. He just wanted to sit here, eyes closed, for eternity. They were still with him. He was certain that they would return in his dreams. Oh, how he needed someone. He wanted someone with him with a listening ear, someone he could go to when he was tormented by those demons. He needed someone who could keep him going on. He needed a reason to live. But no, he had promised himself to never, ever do that again. It would only get worse. That person would soon be gone and then he'd have another phantom to add to his growing list.

He listened half-heartedly to the noise going on. It wasn't that he wanted to or he found it entertaining. It simply was because he needed something to keep his brain occupied. Staring at his eyelids was excessively dull, and the thoughts in his head weren't the most pleasant.

"He's not up yet."

"Still? It's been almost two hours! You know, maybe we should check him. He may be semiconscious."

Russell and Max. They were still here. By the other sounds in the room, they were alone, or perhaps there were a couple more people, but not many.

"Wait, where did your dad go?"

Russell laughed. "You've only noticed just now? He's been gone for a while, along with the others. They left once Melissa didn't need him anymore. They're looking for Daleks or anything that needs investigation. He said he'd call me if he found anything. So far, nothing. I suppose the Daleks have scarpered."

The Doctor frowned. Scarper? Daleks didn't scarper. They stayed until their job was done, unless they got a better idea and went along that one. There was something going on here. Normally he would investigate it more thoroughly to see exactly where the Daleks had gone, but not now. He was so tired. It was futile. He couldn't do this anymore.

There were footsteps coming towards him. "I think he's beginning to wake up. Look, he's making a face. Doctor, can you hear me?"

What? That was Melissa's voice! How could she still be alive? He opened his eyes slowly. There she was, looking at him with those wide brown eyes, her hair falling around her face. She smiled. "Hello," he said. "So, you made it?"

Melissa nodded. "It looks like everyone did."

"That's unusual, with the Daleks."

"I guess we were all lucky. You saved us, Doctor."

The Doctor shook his head. "No, I didn't. Not this time. You saved me this time. You did it all yourself. You brilliant humans! Taking on the Daleks, and succeeding!"

"Well, the consoles were just a lucky break," Russell said.

"Doctor, you may not have saved us today, but you've done it hundreds of times," Melissa said. "So what if you weren't on top form today? Everyone has their off days."

"Still, today, it's like you didn't even need me."

"We still need you, Doctor. That was just luck. Providence."

"So, the Daleks are gone?" the Doctor asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah," Max said. "As far as we've seen."

The Doctor got up off the chair and stood on his wobbly knees. Well, he could still walk. With time, he'd recover fully. "I need to find my ship, and then we can leave."

-CR-

They came to a large room sometime during their search. It was full of different objects of varying sizes, shapes, and complexity.

"Well, this looks a little more promising," Russell commented.

"Alright, time to get to work," the Doctor said.

"What is all this stuff?" Melissa asked.

"Oh, various things," the Doctor said. "I think I recognize some of these as weapons. I guess the Daleks thought that they could use them in their conquest of the earth, and also to stop any assistance that may come to earth."

"So, all this stuff is basically part of their back-up plan."

"I suppose. I wonder where they got to. I know Daleks. They don't give up. They don't simply go home and hope to do better the next time. They keep going until they're either defeated or they win."

Melissa shrugged. "Maybe they haven't given up. Maybe they're planning something else."

"Well, I'm not going to stick around and wait," the Doctor said. "Not the type. If anything happens, I'll probably hear of it. I always seem to, somehow."

Melissa smiled. "I'll keep an eye out. You have a number or something?"

"Ah, well, I know some people you can call. They're called UNIT. They keep on top of these things."

Melissa sighed. "So, this is how you do it? You just… save the world and go? Without any thanks or anything? Just pack up and leave?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Not everyone is happy with me. And there's too much that has happened. I just need to get away."

"And you're alone?"

"Yeah. It's better that way."

"No, it's not. Especially now."

The Doctor sighed. He knew that she was right. He was lonely. And after this time, with the memories of all those vicious phantoms, he was desperate for company. Company would keep his mind from going down that path. Melissa would make excellent company. Smart, kind, curious… he would love to show her the universe, and she would help him. She wouldn't have it any other way. However, he knew what would happen to her. She would be killed or taken away from him. It was always the same. She'd be better off on this planet, at home with her family. _He'd_ be better off without her. He couldn't deal with losing yet another one.

"No, Melissa," he said firmly. "I already told you. I don't take anyone with me anymore."

They wove in and out of the huge, impressive devices. They made a sort of maze. Finally, the Doctor recognized a blue shape. He smiled. There was the TARDIS. "There you are, my girl!" he said, coming up to her and putting a hand on her blue wooden surface. "No damage. They have hardly touched you. I guess they were waiting until after I was gone to find out about your secrets."

"What's that?" Melissa asked.

"Doctor, I must ask you to say," Russell said.

The Doctor spun around. "What?"

"You must come with us. I'm sorry, I know all you've done, but I agree with Dad: you're too much of a threat. We don't want what happened today to happen again."

Melissa and Max gaped at him. "What?" Max gasped. "He just saved us! And he'll do it again, I'm sure. If you capture him, then he might not be able to! This is just shooting ourselves in the foot!"

"Max, we don't know what he's capable of," Russell reasoned.

"You don't know what you're doing," the Doctor said.

"Doctor, I'm sorry, it's nothing personal, but I have a duty to my country. Besides, I don't think you have the proper documentation. You're not here legally."

"That's ridiculous."

"Can I see your passport?"

The Doctor sighed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his psychic paper. "There! Are you happy? And the visa's still current."

"Still, I need you to come with me."

"Russell, be reasonable."

Russell pulled out his pistol. "No. _You_ be reasonable. It won't be permanent. We just want to keep an eye on you. If anything happens, you'll be free to help."

"Yeah, like I'd believe that."

"Russell, this is a very bad idea," Melissa warned.

"No, no, I'll come," the Doctor said, stepping back towards the TARDIS. "Wait here just a sec. I'll be right back. I just need to get to some… alieny stuff from in here before I turn myself in."

"Alright," Russell said. "But no funny business."

The Doctor ducked into the TARDIS. He grinned as he danced around the console. Really, that was just too easy. Now, time to disappear. Oh, they would be surprised.

Meanwhile, Melissa was gaping at the TARDIS's door. "No…" she said. "No, Doctor, you can't!" She lunged forward.

Russell grabbed her shirt. "Melissa, stay back! We don't know what he's got in there!"

"Oh, stop it!" Max said. "Why on earth are you doing this, Russell?"

"Orders. My dad thought that it would be wise."

"Well, you're dad's not the smartest person around."

Melissa ducked out of Russell's grip. She ran to the door. "No, Doctor! You can't just give yourself up! We need you free!" She pulled it open after only a moment's hesitation and ran inside.

Several things happened at once. Almost as soon as Melissa charged inside, the door slammed shut and a strange noise began to come from the police box. They could hear a sharp yelp of surprise from Melissa. "No!" the Doctor yelled. "What are you doing here?" The police box began to fade from view. The two men stood there, gaping as the TARDIS dematerialized.

"Well, he's gone," Max said. "_She's_ gone."

"Oh, Dad's going to get mad," Russell sighed.

"You were tricked, Russell. And I'm glad for that."

"How did they fit in there? How – Where did it go?"

Max shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Oh dear, now Melissa has been abducted by aliens. What are we going to tell everyone?"

"I don't think she's been abducted. More like… stowed away. Accidentally."

"Still, we don't know what the Doctor is going to do to her. He might hurt her."

"I really don't think so. He's lost too much. Maybe – Maybe he'll let her stay with him. For a while."

"I hope she'll be safe." He phone started ringing. "Hello?"

"What's going on?" Clarice asked. "What's happened?"

"A miracle," Russell said. "We're not going to die after all."

"Great! So, what's happened with the Doctor?"

"He's gone. He's flown off in his… police box… thingy. I know you won't believe me."

Clarice laughed. "No, I know you. You're not one for pulling my leg. I want to hear all of it from you."

"Oh, and the girl? Well, she's gone with him."

"What? He abducted her?"

"No, not really. It was an accident. But I don't think she'll be wanting to come back anytime soon."

"Well, I hope she has fun."

"Me too. Bye, Clarice. I'll try to come by a little later. I haven't seen you for ages!"

"And I'll be waiting for you. Bye, Russell!"

He hung up and looked at Max. "So, what do we do now?"

Max shrugged. "Go back home. Keep an eye out for the Daleks."

"Yeah. Who do we talk to if they come around again?"

"I don't know. The Doctor told Melissa of some sort of unit thing. I'll look into it." He looked around at the piles of junk. "Maybe they can take care of all this stuff."

Russell extended his hand. "It was nice working with you today, Max."

"Oh, yes," Max said, shaking his hand. "Let's get out of here."

And so the two men went back to their old lives, nothing having changed much except for them. They knew more now, and they knew that the earth wasn't the only inhabited planet in the universe. They knew that, somewhere out there, there were those Daleks again, doing who knows what. There might even be worse creatures out there, monsters who were watching the earth hungrily, waiting to feast on its unsuspecting inhabitants. However, somewhere out there, spinning among the stars, there was the Doctor, Melissa with him. He would come back time and time again to protect them. He might not be the only one. Whenever they looked up at the stars, they would look for that blue box, wondering where it was. They would look up and remember the danger the earth had been. They would look up and know that they had enemies out there. However, they would also know that they had friends up there. There were friends among the stars.

*A/N The end! Thanks for reading and reviewing. I'll be back with the next book in a while. I've already thought up a plot. You may have to wait a bit, because I'll be writing something else. But don't worry, I'll also write a little prelude into the next book for you. Keep tuned!


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